A Heart of Crystal
by Gundoru
Summary: A wounded soul, kind to all he meets. In trying to fix his past mistakes, he will come across a group of troublemakers, and find a new family. Through his adventures with the mages of Fairy Tail, Sora will learn to master his magic and protect those he holds dear.
1. The Encounter

A/N: Hello everyone. This is my second story on this site. Using an idea that I've had in my head for years actually, but only recently got convinced to turn it into an actual story. Hopefully, this story is as well received as my other story for Yugioh Arc V. Either way, I hope everyone reading this enjoys what I have come up with.

Note: This takes place before the Phantom Lord Arc of the series.

* * *

At the station for the town known as Hari Village, a train from Magnolia pulled up with a hiss. As the doors opened, a pink-haired individual walked out slowly, trying to hold in his lunch. "Urgh, I hate trains."

"Come on flame-brain, you're embarrassing yourself." A raven haired boy says, walking out in just his boxers.

A blonde then walked past him with an expression as if she had given up. "Gray, your clothes."

This prompted the raven-head to look down in shock. "OH COME ON WHY DOES THIS KEEP HAPPENING?!"

"Ha! Now who's the one embarrassing themselves, ya stripper!" The pinkette having recovered, laughed and pointed at him.

"What was that you loud-mouthed pyro?!" Gray then leaned up and braced his forehead against the pinkie with an angry glare that was matched by the other.

"You heard me you stupid walking popsicle!"

"Ash tray!"

"Droopy eyes!"

"Slanty eyes!"

At that moment, a pair of armored fists went down on their heads, dropping both to the floor. Standing over them was an armored girl with long red hair and an angry look on her face. "Knock it off, both of you!"

They both then shot up, lumps on their heads and arms around each other with looks of fearful obedience. "AYE SIR!"

The blonde sweat-drops. "When are those 2 ever gonna learn not to fight in front of Erza?" She asks herself.

At that moment, a blue cat with white wings flew up next to her. "That's Gray and Natsu for ya!"

Later on, the group of 5 were walking down a street lined by buildings similar to what you'd see in Magnolia and heading towards the town museum.

The blonde then sent a small glare at the rest. "Remind me again why you guys are here? I wanted to do this job on my own."

"Well we're a team remember? Wherever one of us goes, we all go!" The pink haired boy, Natsu, states cheerfully.

The cat then flew above them happily. "Yeah Lucy, you're stuck with us through thick and thin!"

The blonde, Lucy, sighs. "But I wanted to do a mission by myself and WITHOUT property damage." She says.

The redhead, Erza, was pulling a massive load of luggage on a cart with one hand, then clenched the other before her face with eyes closed. "My apologies Lucy, I couldn't stop them from following you. That said, I believe my presence will at least make them better able to control their destructive tendencies. I swear to you, if I fail in anyway, you may strike me!"

Lucy's sweat drop only grew. "N-no thanks, I'm good."

Gray then lifted his arms behind his head. "Well, too late to change anything now. What was the job again?" He then turned to Lucy who was pulling out the job request.

"We're supposed to help guard a new exhibit in the museum in this village. We're going to meet the curator for more details."

Natsu looked bored. "So where is this museum already?" He then looked at the flying cat that was now by his head. "Hey Happy, any idea how far away this place is already?"

"It shouldn't be too far. It should be right at the center of the village." Happy the cat said.

"Can we hurry up then? I'm starving!" Natsu exclaims impatiently.

Lucy sighed in defeat, resigning herself to not being able to do this job on her own like she had wanted and they all walked over to meet up with the curator.

Eventually, they were in front of the museum, the curator being out front to greet them. He was a portly man with a balding head of black hair. As he saw them, he walked up and shook each of their hands. "Ah, hello, hello. Are you the Fairy Tail wizards that took up our request?"

"Yes sir we are. My name's Lucy, and this is Natsu, Happy, Gray, and Erza."

"Ah, hello. I am the curator here, Mr. Erikson. I truly do appreciate you all coming here to protect the Star Prism."

"The Star Prism?" Natsu asks. "What's that? It sounds tasty." He drools.

Mr. Erikson looked at him in horror. But before he could even open his mouth, Erza struck him in the head with her armored fist. "Natsu, the Star Prism isn't food! It's what we're here to guard."

Mr. Erikson cleared his throat. "Yes, as Ms. Erza said, the Star Prism is what you are here to protect. In fact, tonight's the night where we open its exhibit." He says.

Gray tilted his head towards the man. "What's so special about it? This job is the first I've ever heard about such a thing."

"How about I show you why this crystal is so valuable?" Erikson asks, gesturing for them to enter behind him.

They followed Erikson into a large room with decorations and tables still being put up, and walked with him up to a glass case in the middle of the room, awestruck by what they saw. Within the case lay a crystal in the shape of a star, the center the size of a human fist and the points extending out just as much as the center was wide. But the most incredible thing, was that it was colored in every color in the rainbow's spectrum, with no discernible pattern. The way the colors blended and mixed together was nearly hypnotic in its simple yet complex beauty.

"Wow." Lucy and Happy breathes out.

"Beautiful." Erza says.

Erikson nodded at the awestruck faces of all five, noting that even Natsu was at a loss for words. "Yes, as you can see the Star Prism is something that makes even the simplest people feel the need to admire its beauty. No one knows how the Star Prisms came to be, but all can agree that they are something incredible."

"Wow, no reason why you hired us. You think that someone will try to steal it when you reveal it, right?" Lucy asks.

"Of course. Not only is it priceless, but there have already been 2 thefts."

"What?!" The mages asked in shock.

The curator just sighed. "This isn't the first Star Prism to be put on display, this would be the third. The other 2 were stolen some time ago, each time without anyone seeing the perpetrator. One of them were even stolen from within the capitol of Crocus!"

This shocked Team Natsu to the core. "How the hell did someone manage to steal one from the capitol?!" Gray exclaims.

"No one knows. That second Prism was guarded with specially designed Lacrimas meant to alert and activate traps when anyone approached it, and had guards around it constantly. But next thing anyone knew, the case was empty and there was no trace of anyone there! Many suspected that the guards were bribed to create weaknesses, but nothing could be proved!"

"You think that the ones who stole those Stars will also try to steal this one, don't you?" Erza said as more of a statement than a question.

"Haaah, I think they might. After managing to steal one from the capitol, I dare say they might think this one would be child's play. Which is why I made a request with your guild. I was hoping that if you all blended in with the party goers, you might be able to catch them in the act and expose how they pulled it off. I even got the necessary Lacrimas and hid them in places that would allow them to alert about anyone who got to close or used magic in close proximity to it without arousing suspicion."

"Don't worry old man, you can count on us to protect that big beautiful rock!" Natsu exclaims, punching his open palm.

Erikson had his hands clasped in front of him and happy tears in his eyes. "Oh, thank you so much!" He then took a moment to compose himself and wipe the tears from his eyes and looked back at them. "Now as I said, I will need you all to do your best to blend into the party. I will provide you all with suits and dresses that you may all pick from at your leisure."

"Awe man, I have to wear a monkey suit at this thing?!" Natsu groans.

Erza then sent him a calm look. "Is that going to be a problem?"

Doing a complete 180, Natsu salutes to Erza. "NO MA'AM!" He squeaks out.

"Now then, the event isn't for a while, so feel free to spend some time in town and enjoy all we have to offer. I will have our options for you all prepared within the next few hours. Until then, please enjoy yourselves."

The mages nodded and left the museum. "So what do you guys wanna do now?" Lucy asks.

"I'm gonna get some grub!" "Aye sir!" Natsu and Happy then ran/flew off looking for a place to eat.

"Slow down you idiots!" Gray yells, chasing after them.

The girls let out a sigh at their antics, before Erza turned to Lucy. "Shall we join them?"

"You go do that, I'm just gonna do some sightseeing for now." Lucy declines.

"Alright then. We'll meet with you later." With a wave, Erza, walked off after the others, while Lucy began to walk around town.

She looked around for a while, amazed by the sights. "Wow, this place looks a lot like Magnolia, minus the lack of canals… Hm? What's that?" Her attention was captured by a shop with jewelry in the window and a sign on top that said 'Magic Tools and Jewelry'. She decided to look into it more and entered the shop.

Looking around, she saw all manners of jewelry and items, each one having some of the best shaped gems she'd ever seen. "Woah! These are incredible!"

"Thank you."

Lucy turned at the voice to see someone walking over from behind the counter where a brown-haired woman was working the counter. The person approaching her was a young man with short black hair and sharp silver eyes. He wore a white short-sleeved shirt over long brown pants, ending with black shoes. He then sent her a friendly smile and indicated the gems she was looking at. "You impressed by the designs?"

"Oh yes, they are all very beautiful." Lucy says.

"You can thank Mr. Miracle Worker over there." They both turned to the smirking woman behind the counter. "He's the one who shaped those beauties himself, and even helped to get them set into the rings and amulets and such."

The person in question just shook his head with a smile. "Thank you once again Loral, for giving me more praise than I need."

Lucy looked at the man in awe. "You made these?" Her voice was layered in awe.

He then rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment. "Yeah, kinda. Though Loral here knows I'd prefer if she didn't brag about my work so much." He then sent a weak glare at the woman who simply grinned at him.

"Still, all of this stuff is impressive. I've never seen anything like it." Lucy says.

He then turned back to her with a small smile. "Thanks. I do enjoy my work, and as embarrassing as it is, it does sound nice to hear people like it. Oh! Where are my manners?" He then held out a hand to her. "Hi, my name is Sora."

"My name's Lucy, nice to meet you!" She accepts the hand and they both shook.

Sora then blinked at the pink mark on the hand she was shaking with, and his eyes lit up in recognition. "Hey, isn't that a guild marking?" He then looked her in the eyes. "Does that mean you're a wizard?"

"Oh, yeah, I'm a part of Fairy Tail." She then held up her hand, showing off the mark.

"Nice! I've heard great things about that guild. Mind if I ask what kind of magic you use?"

"I'm a Celestial Mage."

"Ah, so you use Gate Keys to summon Spirits? Well then…" He then turned to Loral behind the counter, much to Lucy's confusion. "Would you mind?"

Loral smirked. "Not at all." She then reached under the counter and pulled out a small box.

"Uh, what's going on?" Lucy asks. Loral then opened the box with a grin, making Lucy's eyes shine from the contents. "No way! You have Gate Keys?!"

"Yep!" Sora says with a grin.

Loral then gave a small laugh. "The sign does say 'Magic TOOLS and Jewelry.' We only have silver keys, but who knows. You might find something useful."

Lucy looked through the keys, a few grabbing her attention. "Wow, some of these can be hard to come by. Are there prices for them?"

Both Sora and Loral looked up in thought, before Loral nodded her head. "Right, we don't often sell these, so I stopped bothering to put the price tag on the box. Let's see…" She then crouched down and started rummaging under the counter. "… Ah-ha! Found it!" She then pulled out a sticker and slapped it on the front of the box, the numbers making Lucy's eyes widen.

"Woah! That's way more expensive than I thought they would be!"

"Well, since we never really sell these, maybe we can sell them at a cheaper price." Sora says.

"Don't you mean ME, you little freelancer?" Loral then sent a playful smirk at the grinning Sora.

Lucy looked between them. "Are you guys…?" She trails off.

The 2 then started laughing before Sora turned to Lucy. "To be completely honest, Loral and I are just friends. I don't really work here."

"Really? But you made this stuff. I'm just surprised is all."

"True, but it's mostly because Loral is a frequent customer. In truth, I'm a freelance crystal sculptor. I shape things from ring pieces, to full-sized statues through commissions. Loral here is my most loyal customer."

"Wow." Lucy says, look at him with starry eyes.

Loral then had another laugh. "Yeah, and no matter how hard I try to have him and his skill all to myself, he still keeps on rejecting my offers. Hell, I offered this guy a bigger salary than even I get and he still said no!"

"Sorry, but staying in one spot too long isn't my style." Sora smirked at her.

"Yeah, yeah, you and your wanderlust is so infuriating sometimes. I'm not giving up though!"

"You're just gonna waste your breath."

"Haha, I know I'll get you eventually!" They both laughed again, then turned back to Lucy who still seemed to have a few stars in her eyes.

"Uh, you OK?" Sora asks after a moment of silence.

Lucy snapped out of it at that. "Oh, yeah, sorry. It's just that I was a little surprised at how good you were. Why not take a permanent job in the capitol if you're this good?"

"Like I said, staying in one spot for too long isn't my style."

"Yeah, I guess I can understand that. After all, every day with Fairy Tail is like an adventure. In its own crazy way sometimes."

"Huh. That sounds nice." Sora says.

"Yeah. In a way, Fairy Tail has become my family." She then looked at her guild mark with a genuine smile. "I know people say you can't choose your family, but in this case they would be wrong. I couldn't pick a better family of misfits and odd balls to be with than them."

Sora was silent as she talked, a thoughtful expression on his face.

Loral caught the look on his face, knowing a bit of what he was thinking about. "Uh, Sora? You okay?" Lucy looked up at that, and saw Sora shaking his head and sending a thankful look to Loral.

"Yeah, yeah I'm good Loral."

"Are you OK?" Lucy asks in concern.

Sora then gave her a small smile. "Yeah, sorry. Just miss my own family sometimes. Regardless, you seem to have found something special with Fairy Tail."

"Yeah… I have." Lucy mutters, wearing a smile of her own.

Loral then leaned her weight on the counter. "So what brings you into town? Here for the sights?"

"Oh no, we were actually hired to protect the museum's new exhibit when it opens tonight."

Sora whistled. "Wow. Sounds like fun. Have you seen the Star Prism yet?"

"Yeah, it's actually what we're here to protect."

"Nice. I've heard stories about how beautiful the Star Prisms were, but haven't actually been able to see them myself. Is it as great as they say?"

"I don't know what these stories say about it, but yeah, it's really beautiful."

Loral slumped over. "Lucky you. I can't wait to see it for myself."

"Well maybe you can tonight, I mean, that's when they are gonna reveal it to the rest of the village."

"Yeah, but it's hard waiting!"

Sora and Lucy chuckled as Loral pouted childishly. Sora then turned to Lucy. "Well then, maybe we'll see you at the event."

"Yeah, maybe." Lucy smiles.

At that moment, the town bells started ringing, alerting Lucy as to the time. "Woah, I spent more time wandering around than I thought." She then turned back to Sora and Loral. "Sorry, I need to meet up with my friends. I'll see you guys later!"

"See ya." "Come back anytime." Sora and Loral both said their farewells as Lucy left.

* * *

After meeting up with the others, who surprisingly didn't break anything, they went back to the museum and Mr. Erikson provided them with outfits to choose from and places to change into. They all found clothes that they liked or tolerated. Gray and Natsu had tuxedos, Lucy and Erza were wearing fancy dresses, and Happy was wearing a simple bow-tie.

Gray and Natsu fiddled with the collars of their tuxes. "Ah man, these things are so weird!"

"You're telling me flame brain."

"Oh come on guys, it can't be that bad." Lucy says with her hands behind her back.

Erza walked up to them with hands on her hips and a smile on her face. "Come now, this will be fun. Moreover, no thief would even realize we're wizards until after we spring our trap. By the way, lovely gloves Lucy."

"Thanks."

At that moment, Erikson walked in, looking pleased at their appearance. "Ah, splendid, you all are ready, and looking very marvelous as well."

Lucy walked up to him with a smile. "Thanks again for the outfits. They are amazing!"

"It's my pleasure dear. Now come along, the guests should be coming in any time now."

"Of course." Erza then turned to Natsu and Gray. "Natsu, behave yourself. Gray, do not strip at least until something happens."

"Aye Sir!" Gray and Natsu exclaims fearfully.

Later, everyone was going about mingling as best they could, which wasn't much for Natsu seeing as he went straight for the buffet table with Happy.

Lucy sighs, seeing Natsu was once again being a glutton in public. 'Why can't he earn to at least socialize like a normal person?'

"Hey Lucy, we meet again!" Turning to the voice, Lucy smiled at seeing Loral in her own dress.

"Loral, hey! Good to see you." They shared a small hug.

Loral smiled at her when they broke away. "Good to see you too. By the way, Sora says he's going to be a bit late. He has some work to finish up before he'll be able to come by."

"Oh, well I hope he makes it soon, they're about to reveal the Star Prism any minute now"

"Really!? Yes! I can't wait!" Her eyes then each had a star that looked like the Prism in them.

The Fairy Tail team continued to mingle around, except for Natsu and Happy whom stuffed their faces with food.

After a while, Mr. Erikson got everyone's attention. "Ladies and gentleman, the moment you've all been waiting for has come!" At the moment, everyone began to gather around him and a case with a cloth over it, the Fairy Tail wizards making sure to stand in the front and on different sides.

"May I present to you, the most beautiful crystal you shall ever see, the Star Prism!" The white cloth rose up, showing the Star Prism in its glass case, prompting everyone who hasn't seen it to go 'oh' and 'ah'.

Next to Lucy, Loral's eyes were filled to the brim with the image of the crystal. "Wow, it's even better than I've heard!"

"Yeah, it's really beautiful when you see it up close, isn't it?"

Everyone simply stood around, admiring the Star for several minutes, before Natsu's Nose twitched, causing him to look around in confusion.

Gray, who was standing next to his rival, noticed. "What's up flame brain?"

Natsu looked about, sniffing around a little more. "Not sure. There's a strange scent in the area."

"You sure that's not just you?"

Natsu ignored him, focusing on the scent, and he looked at just the right spot at just the right moment to see a slight shimmer. He then quickly reached out and grabbed what felt like an arm, much to the shock of everyone who saw him. "Who's there?"

No one in the room moved for a few moments, wondering what was happening before everyone heard an echoed voice. "Well now, this is unexpected." A light then shimmered where Natsu was grabbing that then extended out, revealing a person in black clothing with shining gloves and greaves, as well as a rounded helmet that hid everything but their left eye, shocking everyone who saw it was colored exactly like the Star Prism save for a gold pupil. "I haven't even really started going for it yet. How did you even know I was there?"

"I was able to smell ya." Natsu says bluntly.

The figure's eye seemed to blink, then lifted their other arm to where their nose would be and sniffed. "Huh, I don't think I smell that bad." They then turned to Natsu calmly. "How did you manage to smell me of all things?"

"I'm a Dragon Slayer, our senses are much better than a regular human's."

"Dragon Slayer you say? Interesting. Pleasure to meet you. May I ask for the names of you and your friends here?" He then waved his arm in the general directions of the rest of the team, prompting them to put on their game faces and step forward.

Lucy looked back at the shocked Loral. "Loral, stay back. Me and my friends will handle this." Loral nodded back before Lucy went back to paying attention to the surprise guest.

"Yeah, I'm Natsu Dragneel, and my friends are Gray, Erza, Happy, and Lucy, and we're here to protect that pretty rock from thieves like you."

"Oh really? Well then, I'm afraid I need to correct you on something Mr. Dragneel."

"Oh yeah? What's that?"

The figure then leaned in close to Natsu. "There are no thieves like me. Now talk to the hand." He then moved his head back and put his palm in front of Natsu's face. "Flash!"

A bright light then shone out from his palm, blinding Natsu and causing him to release the thief and reach for his eyes. "AHH! MY EYES!"

The thief then made a mad dash toward the Star Prism, but lances and swords of ice stabbed in front of his path.

They then looked to a now topless Gray, who was wearing a smirk on his face. "Nice trick." They then summoned a pair of clear hand axes. "But mine are stronger." He then proceeded to slash and bash his way through the ice, much to Gray's shock at how easily he was doing it until he was at the case.

As he was about to touch it, a sword was held at his neck.

The thief then turned their eye to the owner of said sword, and saw Erza now in her Heart Kreuz armor. "Well this is awkward. I don't suppose I can ask you kindly to drop that?"

"Not a chance, you have to pay the consequences for trying to steal a rare artifact." Erza says coldly.

"Fair enough, but what about him?" Erza then felt a blade on her own neck and turned her head in shock to see a second thief looking exactly the same as the one before her!

"A clone?" She says in shock.

"The question is…" The one at her neck stated.

The first one then broke the case around the Star. "Which one is real?"

Erza grit her teeth, seeing as she was pinned down.

As the new thief kept their ax at Erza's neck, the first one grabbed the Star and looked about the shocked faces of the wizards and guests. "Well, this has been a lovely evening everyone, truly. But I'm afraid I need to escort my new friend out of here."

Gray and Natsu gritted their teeth, not seeing any way to get their friend without getting her beheaded, while Lucy and Happy watched in fear of what they might do to Erza.

The thief then put the star in a black pouch at their side, before clasping their hands together. "Now, I really did intend to do this quietly and without fuss, but I guess some things just don't go the way we plan. So allow me to show myself out." He then raised his hands as his gauntlets began to shine even more than before. "Great Flash!"

A bright flash of light emitted from his gauntlets blinding everyone, even the Fairy Tail mages. After a few moments, everyone was able to open their eyes and saw that both figures were gone.

"Dammit, where'd he go?! I wanted a fight!" Natsu yells.

Erza clenched a fist in front of her. "How dare that imbecile make fools of us!" She then turned and pointed at Natsu. "Hurry and see if you can track his scent!"

"On it!" Natsu then sniffed around like a dog, trying to find the thief's scent.

Lucy sweat-dropped at the actions. "Guys, you're not gonna find him like-"

"I got his trail!"

"FOR REAL!?"

"Yeah, come on! I wanna knock his lights out!" Natsu ran out of the museum, his friends following him, Loral sending Lucy a quick "Be careful!" before they were gone.

As they ran after Natsu, Lucy turned to the others. "Okay, so he can go invisible, release flashes of light, create weapons from nothing, and apparently multiply himself. Anyone have an idea of what his magic is?"

"No idea, it's like he has multiple kinds of magic or something." Gray replies.

Erza looked ahead with a hard look. "Be on your guard for whatever comes next. There's no telling what this person might be capable of without any information to go on about them." Her look then turned into one of fury as she yelled. "But no matter what, he will pay for using me as a hostage for his escape!"

Gray and Lucy looked at her nervously before nodding as they finally caught up to Natsu and Happy, who had flown after him the same time that he left.

After several more minutes of running, they came across a park area and saw the figure from before in the center of it. They stopped just at the entrance to it as the thief greeted them. "Well now, I guess you guys really do have a human bloodhound on your team. I was hoping to confirm that before I tried to make certain of my escape."

"What'd you call me you mask freak?!" Natsu yells with a tick mark as flames leaked out of his mouth in anger. "That's it! Not only are we going to get that rock back, but we're gonna kick your ass too!"

"Wow, you are a bit of a hot head aren't you? Now let's see here. From the flames I see coming from your mouth, I'd wager you're a Dragon Slayer who specializes in fire, the Salamander of Fairy Tail perhaps? Mr. Topless, or Gray as you said, seems to be an Ice Maker Wizard if the earlier constructs are anything to mention. And if we're talking Fairy Tail, then the redhead's ability to go from a dress to armor and sword in no time flat would identify her as Erza Scarlet, or Titania. And lastly, judging from the keys on Miss Lucy's waist, I'd say you were a Celestial Wizard. How am I doing so far?"

They all looked shocked of how he was right. Except for Happy. "Hey, what about me?!" He exclaims childishly.

The thief then looked at the cat that was floating above the team. "… You seem to be a talking blue cat that can fly."

"OH MY GOD, THIS GUY IS GOOD!" As Happy had his little freak out, the thief just tilted their head as they watched him.

"Enough! You shall pay for stealing the Star Prism, along with holding me hostage! Prepare yourself!" Erza exclaims, re-quipping 2 swords.

The thief then formed 2 swords of their own. "In my defense, I more or less improvised after Salamander here exposed me. So, no hard feelings?" They ended their sentence with a shrug.

The response they got was Natsu lighting his fists on fire, Gray's palm and fist brought together and emitting frost, Erza re-quipping into her Black Wing Armor, and Lucy cracking her whip with a key at the ready, all of them with determined expressions.

"…Yeah, didn't think so. Can't blame me for trying." He then spun each of his swords around once. "So, who's first?"

Natsu then leapt at him with a roar, fists blazing brightly. As he was about to land on top of the thief, they backed up, leaving Natsu to form a crater in the ground. He then stood up straight and yelled at him. "I am you bastard! Now fight me so I can kick your ass!"

"Good luck with that." The thief then proceeded to swipe both blades at Natsu who leapt back to dodge them.

What he didn't expect however, was the wave of water that shot out from the blades.

As the X-shaped water collided with him, he was sent sailing back past the others, every one of them with a shocked expression on their faces. As Natsu collided with a building, the rest turned to look at the thief cautiously to see him twirling one of his swords again.

This time, Gray attacked. "Ice Make: Lance!" He then fired of a barrage of icy beams that went straight for the thief, only for them to either block or counter the beams with their swords

"Ice Make: Impact!" A large drill-looking device then appeared above the thief, and they jumped back just in time for them to get out of the way.

Right into the path of an angry Erza.

Barely noticing in time, they brought their blades over to intercept both of her own, knocking him back while still in the air, yet righting himself before he landed. Erza then flew over to him with a war cry, quickly trading blows with him, each a flurry of slashes, dodges, blocks, and parries, neither one gaining ground quickly.

After a while, they locked blades, each trying to overpower the other. Erza glared down at the thief. "Impressive swordsmanship, but you will not be able to best me like this."

"Guess so." The blades then emitted a bright light, blinding and surprising Erza enough for the Thief to gain the upper hand and kick her back.

Erza then sent him a look of fury. "That was playing dirty."

The thief then seemed to smirk at her. "Well I'm already breaking the law. Might as well break some more rules while I'm at it."

Just then, the ground behind him burst open and the thief was surprised to see a maid with shackles on her wrists emerge and throw her arms around him, holding his arms to his side and completely restricting his movement. "What?!"

The maid then looked over to Lucy. "Princess, I have done as requested."

Lucy then gave her a thumbs up as the others grinned. "Way to go Virgo!"

The thief blinked. "Virgo? As in one of the Celestial Zodiac? Ah, so that's where you came from." He then looked at the hole right behind him. "Looks like you have a thing for digging holes."

"ALRIGHT VIRGO, HOLD HIM THERE!" The thief then turned to see that Natsu had gotten back and was charging at him with a blazing fist. "Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"

The thief narrowed his eye, "I don't think so." Their feet then emitted strong blasts of water that sent them straight into the air in a spiral with Virgo feeling slightly dizzy from the sudden rotation, while drenching Natsu as he got too close. While in the air, the thief cut off the water, pulled their legs up and aimed their feet at Virgo's waist, before releasing even more water to separate himself from her and send her straight to Lucy's side in a small crater.

Virgo then pulled herself up as the thief landed back in the middle of the park. "I'm sorry Princess, I have failed in my task. Will there be punishment?"

"Worry about that later and help us take this guy down!"

"Understood Princess."

Natsu then looked at the thief in fury. "HOLD STILL ALREADY WOULD YA!"

"I'm fairly sure my best interest involves not getting hit by you, thank you very much."

"ALRIGHT THAT'S IT!" Natsu then took a wide stance and started taking a deep breath. "FIRE DRAGON'S… ROOAAAAR!" He then expelled a powerful torrent of fire, catching the thief off guard and only giving them enough time to cross their swords in front of them before they were swept up in the torrent, consuming them and everything behind them in flames.

As Natsu ended the roar, he looked back at the smoke with a grin. "Alright! No way he's just gonna walk that off!"

Lucy looked at him in anger. "YEAH BUT YOU ALSO TOOK OUT HALF THE PARK WITH THAT YOU IDIOT!"

Happy then chimed in beside her. "That's Natsu for ya!"

Gray and Erza walked up next to him to survey the damage. "Nice work Flame Brain. Might have been a bit too much, but can't argue with results."

"Indeed. He may be skilled with a blade, but no ordinary person can take a Dragon's Roar without some harm."

"Then what does that make me?" The voice stopped them cold as the smoke cleared, revealing the thief looking no more hurt than having some soot that he was brushing off.

"WHAT?! NO WAY?! I HIT YOU DEAD ON WITH MY ROAR!"

The thief then looked at him. "Very true. I must say I didn't expect a roar to turn into an attack, but you are a dragon I suppose. No matter, for flames alone can't hurt me. Even if it is a dragon's flame it seems." They then held up one of their swords, before the blade was wreathed in flames. "After all, you aren't the only one who can play with fire."

Natsu looked at him in surprise, before adopting a feral grin. "Oh yeah? Well you don't wanna play with fire around this dragon, or you're gonna regret it! RAAAAGH!" Natsu then charged right at him, not caring about the burning sword one bit.

The thief was curious what he was up to, so he decided to indulge him and swung the blade at Natsu, creating a wave of fire not unlike what he did earlier with water, but then Natsu did 2 things that surprised him.

First, he caught the flames with his hands.

Second, he took a deep breath and ATE the fire he hurled at him.

As the thief watched in fascination, Natsu finished his meal with a burp and look at the thief in joy. "What the hell man?! Those are the best flames I've ever tasted! How did you make them so good!?"

The thief blinked in surprise at the turn of events before laughing lightly. "Hahaha, well isn't this an interesting day. I wasn't aware that you were able to eat fire."

Natsu then smirked at the thief. "Yup. With that, I can recharge my magic energy and increase my firepower." He then cracked his knuckles. "Now comes the part where I kick your sorry ass."

"Not if my sorry ass has anything to say about it." He then gathered blue light at the end of his blade and swung it, creating a large tornado of water going straight for Natsu.

"You think that's gonna stop me?! Fire Dragon Wing Attack!" Natsu then swung his arms around, creating bursts of fire and sent them straight at the twister, only for it to evade the attack. "What?!"

Somehow, Natsu could tell they had a smug grin under that mask. "I can control its direction from here. How about a game of tag? The twister is 'it'. Just like its friends." He then created 2 more twisters of water and sent all 3 at Natsu, only for them to be turned into towers of ice.

Gray then stepped next to Natsu. "Don't forget about us now."

Erza stood at Natsu's other side, re-quipping into her Heaven's Wheel armor. "The real battle has just begun, criminal."

The thief narrowed their eye at them as they did their standoff, before they charged at each other, each side trying to hit the other and failing to do harm. As Virgo went to try and help the trio, Lucy thought about what they did so far. 'Okay seriously, what is their magic? There was invisibility, flashes, weapon making, cloning, making bursts of water and fire, and even a water twister. How is he doing all this?'

Meanwhile, the thief just managed to get themselves some distance by kicking away Natsu and sending him into Erza, before releasing a burst of water from their sword and knocking Virgo into Gray, then leaped back before they could stand. "Man, this is almost kinda fun. I don't really get into a lot of fights with mages, let alone ones from a guild as well-known as Fairy Tail."

Natsu then turned at the thief in anger. "What's your point?"

The thief turned their head in thought, before looking back at him. "Don't really have one other than how different this is from the usual. I try to keep a low profile, not letting anyone know where I am or what I look like. I guess I'm thanking you for making my life more interesting."

Gray then prepared another ice spell. "Well then let's see how interesting things are when you're behind bars."

"Sorry, can't do that. I'm on a bit of a mission and I intend on completing it. And there's no way I can do that from behind bars."

Erza then narrowed her eyes at the thief. "What sort of mission requires you to steal the Star Prisms. No one even knows what brought them to be, nor what purpose they serve. What do you know?"

The thief was silent for a moment, eye closed, before opening it. "Tell me. Do any of you, hold something you regret?"

The words stopped them all cold, hearing the sincerity in their voice as they spoke, some of them remembering things they'd rather forget. Even Lucy was broken out of her musings at the words. "What do you mean?"

"Sorry, I'm afraid I can't tell you the specifics right now. But I will say this: The Star Prisms are key to fixing my mistakes. And I can't let anything stop me from doing so." He then held his swords up at the ready. "Not even mages of Fairy Tail."

Everyone looked at the thief with various thoughts going through their heads. Eventually, Natsu, Gray, Erza, and Virgo prepared to fight once again. Natsu would run in with burning fists, which was countered by a wave of water. Gray would fire a barrage of ice at him which was stopped by a wave of fire. Erza sent forth a flurry of blades which he parried, dodged, or blocked with his own swords. Virgo attempted to get him from underneath again, only for him to once more propel his way up with water, this time knocking her back into the hole she made.

While in the air, Natsu tried to surprise him with a fiery foot, only for them to raise their feet at him and to form some sort of board on his feet to block the attack. "Nice try, but you'll need to be faster than that!" Water then surged from one end, propelling them away from Natsu and back to the ground, having effectively made a self-propelling surfboard for land!

He then turned to the shocked looks of the Fairies. "Come on hot head, surf's up!" He then directed himself to where Natsu was getting up and grabbed him by the arm and took him for a spin around the park, getting ready to throw him into a building.

Until he heard some unappealing noises, and turned to see a green-faced Natsu. "… No way… Do you get motion sick?"

"I think I'm gonna hurl!"

They blinked, then formed a new plan for their escape. "Well then, let's go for a ride, shall we?" He then looked back ahead and made the board go faster, leaving the park area with a sick Natsu as his friends tried to catch up to them.

As the thief zoomed down the street, he heard some noise behind him and turned to see the cat carrying Gray and Erza wearing… something that couldn't quite be classified as armor, and looked more like fan service. It revealed quite a bit of skin and looked closer to a leopard print swimsuit plus ears, but she was able to keep up with him while wearing it so he didn't think to question it too much. "What do you think you are doing with our comrade?!"

"Making it so he can't track me down for a while. Sorry for this." He then held a sword towards them as it gathered red light, then swung it several times, creating numerous flame twisters to intercept them. Happy pulled back with Gray creating ice shields, while Erza switched to her Flame Empress Armor to combat the flames, managing to slow them down long enough for the thief to escape their sight.

After making several more turns throughout the town, the thief looked at the green-faced Natsu. "Sorry about doing this to ya, really, but I can't let you guys stop me yet." He then lifted Natsu up and tossed him into an alleyway as he passed, before continuing on his way.

While everyone else went after the thief and a green-faced Natsu, Lucy stayed behind to check on a soaked and muddy Virgo. "Hey, are you okay?"

"I am fine Princess, but I have failed you. Will there be punishment now?" Virgo asks.

Lucy sweat-dropped. "No, not now." She then looked in the direction of where everyone else had gone. "Any chance you'll be able to catch up to that crook?"

"I shall see what I can do." Virgo then started tunneling underground.

"Alright Virgo! Let's get this guy!" She then jumped into the hole to follow Virgo.

* * *

Outside of the town, the thief was in the middle of a clearing, inspecting the Star Prism.

"Alright, this looks genuine. Now to just get to a spot where I won't be disturbed for a while. And I know just the place…" They then put the Star Prism back in their pouch and started walking to a more private area.

Just then, the ground in front of them exploded.

The thief jumped back in surprise, and looked to see Virgo in front of him in a battle stance and Lucy crawling out of the hole. "Princess, I have caught up to the criminal."

"…Seriously, you guys are determined as hell. I'm not even sure if I want to question how she was able to track me so quickly."

"What matters to me is that she did, and now we are gonna bring you in." Lucy says.

The thief then placed their hands on their hips and let out a sigh. "Seriously, you guys are tenacious." He then looked at her. "Alright, what if I told you I can deliver the Star Prism back to the Museum, or even straight into your hands so you get credit for completing your job?"

Lucy hesitates. "So does this mean you're gonna give it back?"

"When I'm done with it, yeah. I should only need it for a day, maybe two."

Lucy shakes her head and looks at him. "I'm sorry, but you broke the law by stealing that artifact, I can't let that go unchecked."

"In this case, I think it would be more accurate to say 'borrowing without permission with every intention to return it', or something along those lines."

"You still took it."

"Well it isn't like they'd give it to me if I asked nicely. If you had something really valuable for which you believed to be useless in any practical way, then some random stranger asked to have it for some crazy reason, would you really give it to them?"

"No, and I still don't see why you need it so bad. I mean, I understand it has something to do with a past regret of yours, but that's it. Why are the Star Prisms so important?"

The thief then gripped their hands tightly, before throwing them up in frustration. "Urgh. Alright, fine then! These Star Prisms are key to saving the lives of people very near and dear to me. You happy now!?"

Lucy looked shocked at this. "What?! Are they in danger or something?"

The thief let out a deep breath. "More along the lines of a curse. And the Star Prisms hold the keys to help me free them from it." He then fixed her with a tired look in his eye. "Not that anyone would believe me if I told them. Every test ever performed has shown that the Star Prisms are nigh indestructible, and hold no magic within them. No one would believe my claims even if I spent hours telling them. The only way I can even get near a Star Prism in the first place is to steal them. Hence our current positions."

"How does this curse work? And who cast it?"

They shook their head. "Sorry, not explaining that. If I did, then I would have to tell you my name and/or history, and I'm not taking this mask off in front of anyone until I can at least return a Star Prism to the people I took them from in the first place."

Lucy was silent, thinking on what she should do.

The thief let out a deep sigh. "Look, I know that my actions should get me arrested. It's why I have the mask and try to do things before anyone even notices. All I need is 2 days at most before I can return the Star Prism. I'll even have it sent to your hotel room so you can get your pay for the job, and I will achieve what I need from it. That's all I'm asking for."

Lucy was silent for a few minutes. "Alright, I'll let you take it." As the thief was about to thank her, she added. "But I'm coming with you."

"Uh, what?"

"You heard me." She then crossed her arms with a stern expression on her face. "I can't just let you take the Prism with only the word of a criminal that I will get it back. If you take me with you, then I can keep an eye on what you're doing and make sure that you aren't lying to buy yourself some time. This is as far as I'm willing to go, so take it or get ready to keep fighting." She then reached behind her and put her hand on her whip, ready to pull it out in case he picked 'Fight' as Virgo tensed up behind her, shifting into a battle stance.

The thief narrowed their eye at this. "Hmmm… There's no way I can convince you not to is there?" Lucy shook her head at that, a stern look on her face. The thief then sighed deeply. "Urgh, damn it. Fine, I think I can agree to this, but I will need to ask that you remain blindfolded on the way there. If I lead you there fully aware of where we were, that would lead to you finding out more about me than I like."

"Fine." Lucy then returned her hands to her sides as Virgo relaxed similarly.

The thief nodded before turning to look at Virgo. "So what will she be doing?"

"Virgo, you can go back to the Spirit World now."

"As you wish Princess." She then turned to look at the thief before leaving. "Be advised, if I learn that you harmed the Princess in any way, I will show no mercy."

"Noted." As Virgo shimmered away, the thief created another board beneath their feet and reached into their pocket for a black sash. "Hop on the back, wrap this around your eyes, and hold on tight. If I go too fast for you to hold on, I'll slow. Agreed?"

"Yeah, alright." Lucy agrees and follows his instructions.

* * *

A/N: And that's a wrap for the first chapter. Hope everyone enjoyed this so far. I would also like to thank FanficCrossoverMaster15 for helping me with writing the beginning of this story. I do have more chapters prepared, but I will be trying to post them one at a time while seeing how the response to this story goes.

In any case, please Fav, Follow, Review, or PM to show me how I'm doing. Hope to see you all in the next chapter.


	2. The Story

A/N: So far so good. So, I'm going to go ahead and upload this chapter as well. Hope you guys like what I have here.

Review responses

 **Guest (Martyn):** Glad you liked it. Not a bad idea for a backstory, but hope you like what I had in mind just as well.

 **HunterHQ:** As usual, great to have your support.

* * *

"Natsu!" Happy, Gray and Erza were running down the path the thief had taken, and stumbled upon the queasy Natsu as he was trying to stand up. Gray grabbed his arm and helped him up. "You okay flame brain?"

Natsu then gave him the stink-eye. "What'd ya… call me… ya stripper?"

Gray then smirked at Erza. "He's good."

Erza nodded before turning to Happy. "Go get Lucy and bring her here, and if you see the thief on the way then let us know."

"Aye sir!" Happy flew off while they got Natsu better situated to adjust to his motion sick state.

Erza then knelt down to him. "Natsu? What happened? Where did the thief go?"

He shook his head as he tried to think. "No clue. It was just a bunch of twists and turns, and then he said something I didn't quite catch before I think he tossed me into this alley." He then looked at his landing point and gave himself a sniff before recoiling. "Ah, man! Now I smell like trash! He is SO gonna get it now!"

"Assuming we can land a hit on him." They both looked back at Gray, who was leaning against the wall. "That guy was just about unpredictable. There were way too many types of magic in play for him to be just any ordinary mage. How is it even possible to have magic that can do all that?"

Erza brought a hand to her chin in thought. "It is unclear. My own magic lets me change out different magic arms and armor, but what he did was nothing like requip magic. Perhaps a strange form of Take Over magic, but even then there were too many abilities for any single being to have at once under normal means. Cana can create a variety of effects depending on how she arranges her cards, but this was almost too random. I truly have no idea what this person is."

Natsu then punched the ground, burning away the filth covering him in anger. "Doesn't matter how unpredictable the guy is. If I can just hit him hard enough, then he'll go down easy! Just you wait and see!"

Before either of the other 2 could say anything, Happy came back with a worried look. "Guys, I can't find Lucy!"

* * *

After what felt like 10 to 15 minutes, they came to a stop, the board they were on disappearing slowly before her feet touched the ground. "Okay, we're here. You can take it off now." Freeing her eyes, Lucy looked around to see that they were in some kind of underground facility, and that the thief was just closing the passage that they entered from.

"Where are we?"

He then snapped his fingers, making the gauntlets and greaves disappear and some Lacrimas activated, producing light. "For lack of better word, my place."

Lucy looked around at where she was now. Aside from it looking like an underground bunker, she's surprised to see how livable it looks. There was even a kitchen and dining area on one side, into which the thief wandered over to. "Hungry? We're likely to be here for a while."

"Um, sure, thanks."

They then lifted a tray cover with a small Lacrima on top to reveal some fruit options, then walked over to a fridge and opened it, taking a look inside. "Any requests? Can't promise it'll be here, but might have something close."

"I'm fine with anything, so long as it's edible."

"Well they are certainly edible. I don't know about you, but I feel like pasta." He then pulled out a tub of spaghetti and brought it over to a black cover with a red Lacrima and put it underneath. He then tapped the Lacrima and walked back to the fridge. "Want anything to drink?"

"Water, please."

"Water, coming up." He then closed the fridge and created a pair of crystalline glasses, then held them under a blue Lacrima that filled them with water, before handing one to Lucy. "So, any other questions I can answer?"

"Well, I've been curious of your magic. I mean, you can go invisible, make a clone of yourself, and use multiple elements. Do you have multiple kinds of magic or something?"

"Haha, no, but it certainly does help when people assume so." They then held a finger to their neck, causing a band of crystal to go around it, before touching their helmet, freeing their mouth. When he spoke, he still had the echo in his voice. "I use an unusual type of Maker magic, similar to your icy friend." They then proceeded to take a drink.

"You make crystal constructs? That's so cool."

"Haha, thanks, I certainly think so. In fact, my magic is what led me to the Star Prisms in the first place." The Lacrima over the pasta let out a noise, prompting him to walk over to it.

"Was your magic able to sense them or something?"

"Not exactly." He then lifted up the cover and inspected the pasta, then nodded, creating 2 bowls and a large utensil to scoop out the pasta into the bowls. Finally, a fork for each before offering one to Lucy and taking a seat at the table. "I learned about Star Prisms years ago, and what they could do. My magic lets me use them for their intended purpose, but it doesn't tell me where they are. I have to figure that out on my own. But it does come in handy when Lacrimas are involved."

"Amazing."

He then looked at her. "The food or the magic?"

"Your magic, it's incredible."

The thief then grinned at her. "Thanks. Oh hey, wait one moment." They then got up and left to go through a door, then walked back with a rectangular, pure white Lacrima. "Hold this for a few seconds."

"Uh, ok?"

As she held the Lacrima, a light shone cross her body for a few seconds, before dimming down. She looked herself over, and saw that her dress had been completely cleaned from all of the running and going through Virgo's tunnel earlier. Even her skin and hair had been cleaned!

"Woah. What kind of Lacrima is this?"

"One of my own design." He then sat down and started eating again. "My magic also allows me to modify Lacrimas, seeing as they are crystallized magic, so I made one for cleaning. This one really saves time when doing laundry or maintaining hygiene. I typically keep that one it the bathroom, but I figured you wouldn't want that dress getting any dirtier, especially since I don't have any spare women's clothes."

"Amazing."

"Yeah." He then froze, before looking at her. "Hang on, did we let your friends know that you were coming here with me?"

"Oh, I knew I forgot to do something." Lucy laughs sheepishly.

The thief brought a hand to their head and sighed. "And since 1 of them has a nose that's as good as a bloodhound, they will probably be here within an hour, if not sooner. Great."

"Don't worry, if they do find us, I'll try to talk them down."

"Appreciated, though I think I'll ere on the side of caution." He then created a bowl, then held his palm open. "Crystal Make: Ruby Top." A ruby-red top then formed in his hand, which he tossed in the bowl where it began to spin around and produce flames.

Lucy looked at it in awe as the thief explained. "Natsu said he found my flames tasty, so I think I'll offer some to him as a peace offering. Now then, any of the others have any favorites you can think of?"

"Um, Happy likes fish, and Erza loves strawberry cake, though I don't know what Gray would like though."

He checked his fridge at that. "I guess I'll just ask if he wants anything when he gets here. Lucky for me that I have some Salmon that I picked up recently, and some cake I've been saving for a special occasion."

"Although, I am curious as to where my friends are."

At that moment, a Lacrima started beeping and flashing yellow in a corner near the entrance. The thief looked at it. "Well, I'd say maybe 5-10 minutes away. Those guys work fast."

"Well, you were right about Natsu being a bloodhound."

"Well, yeah, but with how green his face got I thought he'd be out for a little longer. Not to mention we crossed a river on the way here."

"I wouldn't know, I was blindfolded, remember?"

"Well that was kinda the point, but since they are about to get here anyway I guess that whole thing was pointless." The Lacrima then started flashing orange. "Huh. He's moving faster than I thought he would. I think it would be best if you met him at the door."

"Um, ok." Lucy moved over to the entrance.

As the host went and prepared the fish and cake, the Lacrima started flashing red. "Go ahead and open it, I don't want him breaking the door down in his haste. Just tap the Lacrima that will be on your right."

Lucy does as she was told, making the entrance open.

"RAAAAGH!" "AAAAAAGH!"

When the entrance opened, Natsu had been charging straight at it, but ended up running into Lucy instead. As the collided, they rolled on the ground for a bit, going past the dining area and right into the living area, Natsu above Lucy. "Huh? Lucy! You're alright!"

"Of course I'm alright! Now get off me!"

"Right, sorry." Natsu then got up and helped her up as Happy flew in right behind him and threw his crying self at Lucy.

"Lucy! We were so worried!"

"I'm OK guys, seriously, they haven't done anything to me."

"Unless you count serving dinner." Natsu and Happy turned at the voice to see the thief setting the table for 4 more seats.

Natsu then pointed at him in anger. "Hey there you are!" He then brought his fists back and ignited them. "Now I'm really gonna beat you for taking Lucy!"

"Wait, Natsu! I went with him willingly!"

The guy then looked at the fire-breather with his hands in the air. "She's telling the truth. I even have a peace offering if you're willing to listen."

"Can it! I'm not gonna listen to another word you-" Natsu was cut off when he noticed the bowl of fire.

The thief noticed this and smirked, lowering a hand to nudge the bowl in his direction. "You did mention that you liked the taste of the fire I can make, so I thought I'd offer you some."

Natsu immediately lunges toward the bowl and starts slurping it up.

The thief then started laughing. "Careful about the top spinning around in there. The longer you leave it in to spin, the more flames you can eat up."

Natsu simply nodded and kept stuffing his face with the flames.

The thief then turned to the floating cat that looked at him nervously. "Your name was Happy right? I got some Salmon here for you if you want it." He then picked up a crystal plate with the Salmon off of the counter behind him and showed it to the cat.

"FISH!" Happy exclaims happily and pounces on it, taking a large bite of it.

The thief blinked at Happy, now sitting on the plate in his hand and eating the fish in joy. He then slowly put the plate on the table, Happy included, and looked at Lucy. "You weren't kidding. This guy really loves fish."

"Yeah, well, he is a cat."

"True enough." He then looked in the direction of the door. "Huh, I would have thought the other 2 would be-"

"Hey pyro! Slow down would ya!?" "You mustn't keep running off and leaving us behind like that." At that moment, Gray and Erza ran in through the door and saw everyone.

Gray and Erza's eyes then widened upon seeing the thief. "You!" They exclaimed in unison, getting into battle stances.

The thief just blinked at them. "Well there they are." Then looked at Erza and reached behind him, pulling out a crystalline plate with a cake and holding it out to her. "Peace offering?"

Erza looks at the cake, hands trembling.

Gray looked at her, seeing this. "Erza, come on, don't you dare!"

Erza shakes her head and raises her swords more. "You're coming with us thief, whether you like it or not!"

He kept looking at her, as he held out his other hand and a fork appeared. "Did I mention it's strawberry?"

Immediately, she was at the cake in just mere seconds.

Gray watched in shock as Erza sat down and enjoyed the cake, then took notice of Natsu and Happy eating their own offerings as Lucy stood off to the side, an apologetic smile on her face. He then turned to the thief before him, whom shrugged in apology. "Sorry, I didn't know what to prepare for you. Any requests?"

Gray simply stares at the thief, then at his teammates, before sighing and sitting down in a chair. "Can you make something that's cold?"

"I'll see what I got." The thief then took his finished dishes and put them into a sink where they dissipated and the remains fell into the water, before he walked over to the fridge and looked in the freezer above it while the fairies gathered to talk at the table.

"So what exactly is this guy's deal? Why did he steal the Prism?" Gray asks Lucy.

Lucy used her fork to push her food around as she recalled his words. "Apparently, by somehow using the Prism with his magic, he plans to lift a curse from some people he cares about."

"How's a big hunk of rock like that, gonna help lift a curse?"

"He didn't explain how, only that they hold the key to helping him save them. With what he's told me about his magic so far, I'm not so sure if it's really that hard to believe."

Erza cast a look over at her as she continued to eat. "What about this 'curse'? Did you find out anything about it?"

Lucy shook her head. "He wouldn't tell me. But I heard the sincerity in his voice, the emotions he was feeling as he talked about it. I don't think he's making this up." She glanced at the thief in question as he was pouring something into a rectangular crystal construct.

"... So, we're gonna wind up helping this guy, aren't we?" Gray states.

Erza looked over at the thief as they added what looked like sticks to whatever they were doing before putting a pure white cover with a light blue Lacrima on top over it, then tapping the Lacrima. "Let's determine the whole truth of the situation first. They are keeping a few too many things quiet for my liking." She then took another bite of cake with a smile.

"Me too, we don't know if they're actually telling the whole truth." Gray agrees. "What about their magic, got any info on that?"

Lucy nodded. "Yeah, he even showed me a little about what he can do. Apparently, his magic is Crystal Maker magic. Hence all the weapons and even the silverware-or rather, crystal ware-we're using to eat."

"Maker magic?" Gray questions in shock.

"Yeah. He even showed me a bit on how he makes use of several other elements as well." She then turned to Natsu, who was still slurping the fire, but paying attention. "Hey Natsu, reach into the fire and pull out what's inside."

Natsu looks at her in confusion before complying.

Feeling something, he grabs it, causing the flames to die out. "Huh?" He then pulls his hand out from the bowl and shows everyone the ruby top. "What's this?"

"That's what was causing the flames. Put it back in the bowl and spin it, the fire will come back up."

Natsu complied and the bowl was full of flames once again. Gray looked at the bowl in surprise. "You gotta be kidding me. Maker magic that can create other elements? I've never heard of anything like this."

"Neither have I, and it's quite intriguing." Erza says, taking another bite of cake.

"Thanks." They turned to see their host walking over with the crystal container from before, with a dozen sticks poking out from the top. He then brought it over to Gray. "Sorry, don't have a lot of options for cold snacks, so I took some juice and froze them into pop-sickles. Hope you like them."

"Thanks." Gray says gruffly, starting to take one.

"Of course." He then moved over to the last open seat, apparently between Natsu and Erza, grabbing an apple on the way. "All right, what questions do you all have left. I'll answer as best I can."

"I'm guessing asking for your identity is out of the question, isn't it?" Gray asks.

"Sorry. Maybe after I've managed to return Star Prisms to the people I've stolen them from, but not before." He then took a bite out of the apple.

"Wait, you're the one who stole the other Star Prisms?" Erza questioned.

He nodded as he kept snacking. "And I fully intend on returning a Star Prism to each of them. No point in hiding it any longer. I used the same trick Salamander here caught me in the middle of to steal them before. None of the other security systems utilized a sense other than sight or Lacrima. And my magic allows me to sense, identify, and manipulate Lacrima."

"Interesting."

"Yeah, certainly came in handy setting this place up." He then turned and pointed at the black and white covers he was using. "Freezing and Heating Lacrimas, to get food at just the right temperature, as well as to insta-cook or freeze food." He then turned in the other direction and pointed at the tray cover next to the fruit. "Preservation Lacrima to maintain freshness for as long as the Lacrima lasts." He then turned back to the table and indicated the white Lacrima that he showed Lucy earlier that she left next to her on the table. "And that Cleansing Lacrima for cleaning laundry or removing grime and such from skin and hair. Feel free to use it if you feel like it."

The mages, even Natsu, were looking at the Lacrimas in awe. The thief looked at them with a grin. "Alright, any more questions?"

Erza turned to him, cake still in hand. "Exactly, who is it you are trying to save? Family? Village?"

The thief looked down, a hand absentmindedly reaching for his left crystal eye, silent for several seconds. "… Family."

"Why can't you tell us about this curse?"

He then put the apple down and gripped his hands together, as they tried to work out how to say their next words, before looking at a wall on the other side of the room. "… Because it isn't technically a curse." He then stood up and started walking to the wall.

This causes everyone to look at him. "Then, what is it?" Erza questions.

He stopped just in front of the wall, looking at it as he raised a slightly trembling arm, before clenching it into a fist and touching a Lacrima none of them saw before, causing a part of the wall to drop, shocking everyone at what was before them. Behind the wall, were 4 large chunks of multicolored crystal the size of large coffins, and each one could see a vague humanoid shape within them. "… It is the price, of saving a life."

"W… what the hell?" Natsu asks in shock.

The thief let out a tired sigh. "My family consists of my father, my mother, my older brother, my older sister, and me. My parents were treasure hunters who met on the job, trying to one-up each other at every chance, quickly becoming friends and rivals, and eventually falling in love. They still continued doing what they did best and went delving into ancient ruins, eventually bringing their children along when they reached the age of 8. I was 11 when it happened."

"What caused it?" Lucy asks, looking at the thief in sadness.

"I was with my family delving into a new dungeon, something from a civilization we had never heard about, and were nearly at the final chamber. I was the first inside, my small size allowing me to fit through spaces the rest of my family couldn't and find a way to get them in. Once I had established a way for them to get inside, I turned and saw what the treasure was. That was when, I saw my first Star Prism.

I was so caught up in its beauty, the likes of which I had never even comprehended before, I hadn't even noticed I was walking forward, until I had already tripped a trap. I managed to dodge most of it, but I wasn't fast enough, and it took my eye," He then lifted up his shirt, revealing to them a chunk of multicolored crystal above where his heart would be. "And a nice chunk of my heart."

The Fairy Tail mages stared at him in shock, the last of the fish falling from Happy's mouth.

He lowered his shirt as he continued. "My family managed to get to me, and my siblings kept me alive for a while, while my parents looked around to see if there was anything that could help me. They then saw the Star Prism, and my mother was able to translate the writings in the chamber to figure out what it could do. So, my entire family used every ounce of energy they could and performed a ceremony using the Star to save my life. However,"

He then placed a hand on one of the crystal coffins. "The ceremony was meant to be performed by a Crystal Maker mage, and no one in my family had an ounce of magical blood, until that Prism gave me mine to help me survive. As a result, after my life had been saved, each and every one of them began to be encased in this crystal, that shares its coloration with the Prism, and my new eye and heart. The last words I heard my family say was that they loved me, as I was powerless to do anything in my weak state."

Now the mages looked at them in sadness, three of them knowing the pain they're going through.

"The one cardinal rule that my parents ingrained into each of us, was to always be on your guard when in an unknown place, and I forgot all of it when I saw the Prism. I let my guard be lowered, and my entire family paid the price for it. Fortunately, my new eye allowed me to perfectly understand everything that was written down there, so I spent a week committing to paper what I couldn't commit to memory. And that was when I discovered the full truth about the Star Prisms, and if I could gather enough of them, I might be able to free them from the prisons that you see before you. Which, eventually, brings us to the present."

He then created a chair and sat in it, not even wanting to walk back to the table at this point.

He then felt a hand on his shoulder, causing him to look over and see it was Lucy.

He then took a deep breath, before looking again and nodding. "Thanks. First time I've ever really told anyone that."

"Yeah, sometimes it helps when you talk to others about it."

"Yeah, I guess so…"

There was silence for a little longer, before Erza came to stand beside him, a sorrowful look on her face. "How long ago did this happen?"

Sora looked up in thought. "Let's see… I turned 17 a few months back so… about 6 years now."

"Wait, you're only 17?!" Lucy asked him in shock.

"Heh, yeah. The funny thing is, one more year and I'll be older than both my siblings were when they… you know."

"So, how many of these Prisms do you need?" Gray asks.

He shook his head. "Not sure yet. All I know is that every Star Prism I can get my hands on will help make my magic more potent, eventually reaching the point where I should be able to remove the crystals around them. This sort of thing was never recorded there as far as I can tell, so mostly operating on 'get every single one I can and hope for the best'."

"But you don't know if it'll kill." Erza says.

"According to the writings, a skilled and powerful Crystal mage can make pre-existing crystals bend to their will. If even a slight amount of resistance exists, the crystal won't budge without forcing it off. But if they can bypass all resistance, then it flows like water. All I need to do is to reach that state, and I can save them, and using the Prisms is trivial if you are a Crystal Mage. There won't be any killing from using them."

"Can your body even contain that much magic?"

He shook his head. "I didn't say it increases my magic, I said it augments my powers. By that, I meant it increases the number of Gem-types I can utilize, as well as my control over the magic itself."

"So is that how you can use all those different elements?" Natsu asks curiously.

He nodded before getting up and walking over to the table, holding their hands together. "Crystal Make: Citrine Top, Sapphire Top, Ruby Top." He then flung his hands open, releasing 3 tops, the first being a clear yellow, another a light blue, and the last being the red that Natsu had been eating from earlier. As they hit the table and spun, the clear one emitted light, the blue one was covered in a spiral of water, and the last one was also coated in flames.

"I acquired one of these types for each Prism I have come across. I started with Citrine, allowing me to make use of the light element, which I eventually found a way to use it to bend light around me, creating invisibility. The second one allowed me access to Sapphire, letting me make use of water, though no matter how much I make it will always disappear in time. Finally, the one from the capitol gave me Ruby, to which I found a way to be completely immune to fire." He then turned to Natsu with a smirk. "Which is how I survived your roar by the way."

"So you were basically fireproof?! That's cheating!"

"Haha, I was only safe from the fire, and I can only be that way for so long, so I only used it while your roar was going on. Besides, even if your flames couldn't hurt me, the fists underneath those flames could still pack a punch."

"Damn right!"

"Hahaha." He then dismissed the tops, allowing them to fade way, before moving to the back wall of the living area. "Anyway, regardless of whether or not I can save them with this Star, I still intend to give Stars back to the people I took from in the next few days, though it will be a bit tricky to do so."

"How so?" Happy asks.

"Because every other one I've acquired has been destroyed."

"Wait, then how are we supposed to bring that rock back if you destroy it!?" Natsu yells.

He turned back to the mages with a calm look. "By making new ones." He then touched a second hidden Lacrima, dropping another wall, this time revealing a kind of workshop with four clear, star-shaped objects.

"New Star Prisms?" Erza asks.

Their host continued to walk over to the workshop and checked everything. "The Star Prisms were invented by some of the first Crystal mages as a way of helping each other grow in power and ability, sort of like magic instruction manuals on what they've learned, each Star holding some of the wisdom and experience of the maker. By offering each other a Prism they made with their own power, they would forge a strong comradery, each more powerful from it. Following that logic, I also possess the power to create Star Prisms, so I simply need to make new ones to replace all the ones I've stolen."

"That's actually not a bad idea."

"Thanks, it was my plan since the start of all this. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to reach the proper state of quality until after I acquired the one in the capitol. And if I came out as someone who could create Star Prisms, then that would add a whole other class of problems for me. But now that I have the right quality," He then pulled out his most recent acquisition from his pouch. "And something to look at while I work, I can recreate the Star Prisms I've used and can keep one for future reference."

"So you copy what this one looks like, and then we bring the fake back, and no one could tell the difference between them?"

"Pretty much, since it would in every way be exactly the same thing. I even found the recipe for creating them all those years ago. Just need do the finishing touches and no one will be the wiser, especially since it's impossible to even determine the age of these things. After that, I'll be free to acquire the power from the Star I took."

"As far as I can see it's a win-win. We bring a Star back and get paid, while you are one step closer to reviving your family." Natsu says.

"Yeah, which is more or less what I intended when I promised Lucy that very thing since I should only need a day or two to be done. Granted, I had originally planned on not telling you lot any of this either, but nothing to do about it now."

"Well, in all honesty it is your fault." Gray says, eating another popsicle.

"Technically it's Natsu's for sniffing me out back at the Museum. I had planned on delivering it to you guys once I heard you were in town so you could take credit, but the moment he revealed I was there was when my plan went to shit." He then sat down and reached for one of the constructs for inspection.

"You still stole asshole!" Natsu yells.

"And am giving them something of equal value in return. So in this way, it becomes more of a delayed payment. And besides," He then turned to Natsu. "What lengths would you go to for your family?"

This causes the Fairy Tail mages to fall silent.

The Crystal mage sighed. "Look, I know what I've been doing was still wrong, but no other path was available to me. No one would believe my story at first glance, and back when this all began I could barely create a ball-sized crystal, let alone prove what I knew. Stealing them was the best possible option at the time when I started, and remained so until now. If there was another way that would have worked, I would have taken it." He then turned back to the desk. "But it is too late to worry about 'what if's'."

There was silence for a few moments, before one of them noticed something. "But still, how did you knew we were in the city?" Gray asks.

That caused the mage to freeze for several seconds, before turning to them. "I'm very good at gathering information." Then quickly turning back to examine the crystals before him.

"So you were spying on us?"

The mage didn't look at them once. "I was making sure that nothing unexpected came into play, so I kept a close eye on the trains just in case. I happened to see some people with the Fairy Tail guild mark and worked from there. Turns out it was you guys."

The mages still looked at him suspiciously.

The thief then turned to look at them. "Anyway, how about-?" He froze as he noticed something, then swiveled his head around the room as if searching for something.

"Is something wrong?" Lucy asks.

He then looked straight at Gray. "I know you took your shirt off earlier at the museum, but I could have sworn you were wearing pants when you got here."

Gray looks down and starts panicking when noticing he was only in his underwear. "Gah! Why does this always happen!?" He starts looking for his pants as Natsu laughs at him.

The Crystal Mage blinks at this, then looks at the others. "Is this a common occurrence?"

"You have no idea." Lucy sighs.

The mage blinked, then blinked again, before laughing. "Haha, hahaha! Oh man, your guild must be a riot to hang out with if there are more people like you guys there." He then got Gray's attention and pointed at a door. "There's a closet with spare clothes over there if you can't find your own pants. Help yourself."

The ice mage nodded and went back to searching for his pants.

The Crystal mage chuckled some more, before addressing all of them. "Anyway, while I work, feel free to make yourselves at home. If you have any questions, I'll answer as best I can. Otherwise, try not to break anything."

They nodded and sat in various spots.

After a while, Erza glanced back at the mage, whom was focused on channeling magic to color the new Star, then back at the others and spoke quietly. "So, we don't believe his explanation for how he knew we were in town, correct?"

Various words of confirmation were the responses.

Happy flew and landed next to Natsu with the rest of his Salmon, while Natsu was once again slurping fire from the bowl and top offered to him. "But how could he have found out? I don't remember any of us telling anyone we were from Fairy Tail."

Gray nodded. "Yeah, and the fact is we were hired by the curator alone, so none of the staff should have been aware of who we really were. So how did he know?"

Lucy then shuffles nervously. "I, uh, I actually did tell someone else we were here."

Gray and the others then looked at her in surprise. "What?! When?!"

"Remember when we split up? I went to a store that sold crystal accessories and tools and someone there saw my guild mark."

Erza set the last of her cake to the side as she leaned forward and folded her hands. "What happened? How many people were there?"

"Only 2. The owner Loral, and this freelance craftsman named Sora."

Gray raised an eyebrow. "Freelance craftsman?"

"Yeah, a lot of the stuff in the store was made by him, and he says that he doesn't like to stay in one place for too long. The stuff he made was incredible, I'd never seen anything like it. Apparently he even does commissions from small jewelry items, to full-blown crystal sculptures."

Erza narrowed her eyes, then threw another glance at the mage at work. "A crystal craftsman who doesn't like to stay in one place, you say?" She then looked back at Lucy. "Were you able to see his left eye?"

"Yeah, and it was silver, just like his right eye."

Gray held a hand to his chin in thought. "That would say otherwise, but this guy is able to make himself invisible. It might be possible for him to make his eye look completely normal for all we know to blend in better."

"Wait, are you guys saying that the thief and Sora are the same person?"

Gray shrugged. "That, or one of the people at that shop wound up telling someone. Can't say which it is, but it would at least explain how this guy knew we were in town."

"Sora did actually look sad when I brought up family." Lucy said slowly.

Erza looked at the mage in thought. "Hmm, if we simply asked them such, they could try and deny it. But…" She then looked at Natsu, who was confused as everyone glanced at him. "All we really need to do is have Natsu meet this Sora and check his scent."

"But how am I supposed to find this guy? I mean like Lucy said, he loves to move around."

Lucy held a hand to her chin in thought. "He said that he does jobs on commission, so if he still has commissions to do in town, then he should still be going to the shop for a bit. And since Loral is a frequent customer, Sora is there often. We can probably go there saying I wanted to check in on them and introduce you guys as an excuse?"

"Sounds good, but first we need the replacement Star Prism." Gray says.

"Hey guys?" They turned to see the mage walking over with them, a frown on their face and the Star Prism in their hands. "There isn't anything wrong with this Star Prism from the Museum, right? It's in the same condition from when you first saw it?"

Lucy got up and took the Prism, not seeing anything wrong with it. "It looks the same to me, and as beautiful as before as well."

"Well the thing is," He then reached into his pouch and pulled out a Star. "This is the one from the Museum," He then flashed them a big smile. "And that's the one I just finished."

The mages looked at both of the Prisms in awe.

Gray rubbed his eyes and looked at them again. "No freaking way. I can't tell the difference one bit!"

"Yep, I'm just that good." The thief gloats, looking pretty confident.

Erza looked at him with a smirk. "Humble, aren't we?"

"I just like how astonished I made you all look." He then chuckled a little. The mage then looked at the Star in his hand. "Okay, now that I've done it once, I can do it a few more times without a reference. Which means it's time for the… interesting part."

The mages looked at him curiously.

He took a deep breath, before walking over to a part of the room that was mostly bare, aside from a small stand he put the Star on, and a mat that he sat on in front of it. "You guys remember when I said that the ones I've found so far were destroyed?" He then leaned his head one way, then the other, then shook his hands in front of him before holding them out to the Star. "Well, you're about to see how it happens."

This causes intrigue and excitement for the mages, as they try to get a closer look while staying behind him.

The mage stopped for a moment, then turned back to them. "By the way, whatever happens, remain calm." He then looked back at the Star, ignoring the looks on their faces.

"Wait, what? Why?" Erza asks.

Not answering, the mage then thrust their hands out towards the Star, releasing a surge of magic energy that hit the Prism, causing the colors within to move and swirl, looking even more beautiful as it floated above the stand. He then moved his arms to the side, as it rotated and the tips began to turn to dust and flowed to his chest. Upon contact, he let out a hiss of discomfort and strained his arms to remain in their position and resisting the need to close his fingers in pain.

The Fairy mages looked on in concern and worry as they noticed his apparent discomfort, but remembered he said to stay calm, so they waited and watched.

As the Star continued to slowly turn into dust and flow towards him, the mage resisted the urge to shout as he moved his arms even further out, teeth grit tight and in pain, causing the speed of the Star's destruction to increase in speed. As it did so, he began to breathe a little more raggedly as the Star lost its protrusions after a while.

After about another minute of this, he thrust his chest out with a growl, letting it flow even faster, as the now round crystal began to shrink as it flowed into him. As the last of the Prism finally became dust and went into him, a small pulse of magic surged out, hitting the mages like a small wind, knocking them down and sending Happy flying, and the Crystal mage fell back in exhaustion.

The Fairy Tail mages groaned as they got back up. "Is everyone alright?" Erza asked as she helped Lucy up.

Natsu sat up with a hand on his head. "Yeah, I'm good."

Gray got himself to a kneeling position, one eye closed. "Just peachy."

Happy wound up upside-down on his head with eyes as swirls and images of fish spinning around his head as he responded a little weakly. "Aye sirrr…"

"Hey, what about the crystal dude?" Natsu asked.

They all looked to see him breathing raggedly on his back, his arms and legs spread out. "... Ow..."

They all quickly went over to him to see if he was alright. "Hey man, you OK?" Gray asked.

The mage slowly tried to sit up, then gave up after 3 inches. "Ugh, more or less. I may have… left something out about Star Prism usage."

"Let me guess, the part where there's an explosion?"

He chuckled weakly at that. "That was a pulse at best, signifying the end of the assimilation. Though I did learn that the process was supposed to be painless and easy." He then flashed them a tired smile. "Though, apparently, the older a Star Prism is, the more… uncomfortable, it is to use."

The mages nodded, before looking at him curiously. "Uh, dude? Your mask is kind of, cracked." Natsu says, pointing at his mask.

Their eye widened in shock as they felt the air through the crack. "Uh, oh shit." The mage then tried to raise a hand to the mask to repair it, but could barely get it by his chest.

At that moment, their mask and even the crystal around their neck cracked even more, before both burst into sparkles.

Everyone looked in surprise, as a familiar face looked to Lucy in shock, then tried to play it off with a nervous smile, the echo no longer hiding his voice. "Uh, heeeyyy Lucy."

"SORA!" Lucy yells in shock.

Sora, with a silver right eye and a crystal left eye, winced from the volume. "Okay, I get that this is surprising, but I already hurt all over, so can we please leave my ears unharmed?"

Lucy was about to argue, but then thought better of it.

Natsu leaned over and looked at Sora closely. "So this was the guy you were talking about Lucy?"

"Yeah, this is Sora, which actually explains how those accessories and tools were so well crafted."

The mage in question shrugged while on his back. "Kinda. To be honest, it's mostly the eye and my own hands, though I sometimes use my magic to help with the shaping."

"Yeah, I get that."

"Yeah, this thing does a bit more than just let me see through it." He then looked straight up at the ceiling. "If I focus my magic into it, it can act as something of a microscope, letting me see tiny details on a surface, or objects that are far away. It comes in handy with work and stuff."

"Wow." Lucy and Happy say.

Gray shared a look with Erza. "So much for trying to get Natsu to confirm this guy's scent."

"I wonder what element you got from that Prism?" Natsu asks.

Sora let out a deep breath. "Not sure yet. If I focus my magic, I can figure it out. But as we can all see, I'm not exactly in a good condition to find out right now, hehe."

Natsu and Gray then wrapped his arms around their shoulders to pick him up.

"Thanks guys, over to a chair please?" They helped him to the table and let him slump over onto the table a bit. "Thanks." He then turned to Gray. "Hey, are there any pop-sickles left?"

Gray goes over to his previous spot on the table, before coming back with one in hand. "Last one." He says, handing it to Sora.

Sora manages to get himself upright and accepts the pop-sickle. "Thanks man." He then took a bite, enjoying the cold and the flavor. "Mmm, damn, I need to make these more often."

"Yeah, they were actually the best I've ever tasted."

"Hehe, thanks. Especially since I just froze some juice." He then took another bite, before leaning back into the chair as everyone gathered around him. "Well, seeing as you guys now know my name and face, I guess I got nothing left to hide from you guys. Anymore questions for me?"

"Is that how you were able to get close enough to the Star Prisms? You use your job to get as close as you can before putting on that costume?" Erza asks.

"Not exactly, but I do use it to at least gather rumors and information about them. That, and it really does make me more money than you'd think. As for getting close to the Prisms, I use a combination of Lacrima manipulation and invisibility in order to get them."

"Interesting." Erza said as Gray steps up.

"Well, we saw what you can do so far, but what else can you do?"

"Hmmm." He took another bite as he thought. "Well, you saw me using stronger tops to create those water and fire twisters earlier, even if you didn't realize that was how I was doing it. I can make just about any weapon or item I can think of, or even form walls if need be. I'm pretty sure Citrine has the potential to heal, but I haven't really tested that. Though since it is my first Gem-type it is supposed to be the most potent of the ones I can use. Not much more than you've seen already, though I do have some ideas for later constructs. But I was able to confirm that Sapphire could let me breath underwater and move through it like air, so long as I maintain it."

"Cool." Then Natsu jumped in front of Sora and pointed at him.

"Alright, fight me! I still need to get back at you for what you did to me earlier!"

Sora blinked at him, remembering that he used his motion sickness to take him down, then smiled at him. "Alright, but later. I'm sore all over and have my magic exhausted right now." He then winced a bit and reached his empty hand to where his heart was on reflex.

"Are you okay?" Lucy asks in concern

He then gave a comforting smile. "Yeah, all good. Small side effect from sending magic into my heart with no more magic to stop the aches."

Lucy nods, not completely realizing what he said, but Erza has a much different reaction to what he said as her eyes widen in shock. "Wait, you funneled magic into your own heart?!"

This causes the others to gasp in shock, getting Sora to wince at their reactions, then try to look at anything but them. "Uh, well…"

They were all then glaring at him, dangerous auras surrounding him that promised pain.

At that point, he was covered in sweat as he faced their glares. "Um, well, it may or may not be possible, that after I discovered what my new eye can do, I could have tried seeing if I could do anything with my heart out of innocent curiosity, which may or may not have led to me becoming invisible for a little bit, then possibly testing new variations when I could? Eheheheeeee…"

"YOU WHAT!?"

He then looked in fear at the mages before him, seeing as even Happy was unhappy. "Okay, so I may have been a little young and POSSIBLY reckless when I was younger. With maybe a pinch of curiosity and no idea what magic was capable of at the time of when I tried it."

Everything was silent for a few moments, before the mages just sighed and let it go.

Sora let out a deep breath as they stopped. "Sorry, I had no idea that doing such a thing was dangerous until later." He then looked sheepishly to the side and spoke quietly. "About few hours after I woke up…"

Cue anime face fault.

Sora chuckled nervously as they recovered. "Give me a break, I was a stupid kid back then. Besides, my new heart also naturally boosts my constitution somewhat, so I was completely fine after that nap." He then looked down at the table. "Though to be honest, the idea of being invisible was too good to pass up, especially if I was going to acquire more Star Prisms. So, against my better judgment, I trained a little in regulating how much magic I could channel into it comfortably while maintaining its effects. Now, I can currently maintain the benefits of what I call my 'Crystal Heart' abilities for a maximum of 15 minutes a day without feeling any discomfort."

"Still, what you are doing is very dangerous, and very stupid." Erza states, talking as if she were scolding a child.

Sora then eyed them playfully and pointed his now clean pop-sickle stick at her. "Hey, I've heard a lot of rather INTERESTING stories about Fairy Tail, so tell me honestly that none of you guys have done anything dangerous and stupid, and MAYBE I'll apologize for risking my life."

The only response he got was multiple sweat-drops and a few nervous laughs.

"Haha, yeah, I thought so. You guys have to be at least as suicidal as me if you can take on giant monsters like that Lullaby demon, saving all those guild masters at that conference." He then looked in the direction of a bin and tossed his stick at it, cheering slightly when he made it in.

"Well, that's basically the specialty of us Fairy Tail mages." Natsu shrugs with a smile.

"Yeah, you guys have a pretty good reputation for getting the job done while destroying a lot of stuff. Haha."

"Anyway, I believe we should go and bring the replica Prism to the museum, the client will want it soon." Erza says.

Sora nodded to them. "Sure, go ahead. I'll be here for the night. Need to let my magic recharge for a few hours before I can finish the rest of the Prisms, so that will take me well into tomorrow. Feel free to come on by at any time, just promise not to tell anyone about any of this please. Seriously, Lucy, not even Loral knows about any of this, not even about my magic."

They all looked at each other for a few moments, before they turned to Sora with a smile and Natsu nodded. "No problem dude, just get some rest." Getting a grateful smile in return, they left him to rest for the night.

* * *

After a little under an hour of walking from Sora's underground home out of town, they arrived to see the Museum at closing hours with Mr. Erickson walking out the front door, a solemn look on his face. Looking up, he saw the Fairy Tail mages and ho looked at them hopefully as he ran over to them. "You're back! It's been hours, where have you been?! Did you get the Prism back?!"

"Yes sir, we've managed to get the Prism back, but the thief got away from us I'm afraid." Erza says, presenting the replica as the others quietly held their breath.

Erickson's eyes shone as he laid eyes on the Prism, happily taking it with great care. "Oh, thank goodness it is alright!" He then rubbed his eyes with his arm, getting them to relax, then looked at them with gratitude. "I'm just glad it is back where it belongs. Thank you all so much."

They nodded. "So, when do we get paid?" Natsu asks.

Erickson nodded. "Of course, I'll have the money prepared tomorrow. I almost put it away after it was taken, but I see now that that would have been a mistake. You wizards are truly incredible!"

This causes Lucy, Happy, and Natsu to cheer while Gray and Erza smiled in satisfaction.

As the Fairies left the curator to get some rest, no one noticed the dark figure that had ducked into an alley and watched Mr. Erickson walk back into the Museum with the Star Prism, a dark smirk crossing their face.

* * *

A/N: Hope everyone liked the backstory I came up with, as well as how Sora got on good terms with everyone. The way his magic works is something I've thought about for a while, and not too unreasonable considering the other kinds of magic with similar versatility, such as Solid Script or Memory Make.

Now then, I have the next 5 chapters figured out and ready for posting, but still open to ideas on stuff I can do. Will even accept ideas on potential pairings, as I currently have no plans for one. Let me know what you think might be fun, either by review or PM, and show support for this story if you like it through either a favorite or follow.

Anyway, I don't expect to post anything else before Christmas, so see you guys in my next update.

Happy Holidays!


	3. The Conflict

Alright, so far getting good responses for this story, so I figured I'd post a new chapter now, when the clock says Christmas starts up. Hope everyone enjoys this chapter as well as they did the previous ones.

 **Review responses**

 **Taniano3000** : Not a bad idea for the pairing to be Erza. Will definitely consider it for the future.

 **pokeheroaadyn** : Thanks for the compliment, and I fully agree with you on how strong he is for the beginning. That said, I have seen other stories where the OC is probably even more OP, so I tried to downgrade the amount of power I wanted him to have. That said, using his eye's abilities too much will cause migraines, using his heart too much will cause him pain, and the bigger and more complex a construct he creates, the more it will tire him out and exhaust his magic until he gets more control. Any Lacrimas he tampers with can only be adjusted to be similar to what they were originally created from; he can't take one that spews fire and make it one that spews water. And any new techniques he attempts will also be difficult for him to use repeatedly. Let me know if you have any other ideas for how I can either improve or balance his magic, and hope you like what happens this time.

* * *

[At the Fairies' hotel in Hari…]

Lucy, body wrapped in a bathrobe and towel wrapped around her head flopped down onto her bed.

"Haaah, tonight had a little more excitement than I would have liked. What about you Erza?" She then looked at the redhead she was sharing a room with, who was similarly dressed.

"Indeed, tonight had much more action than I first anticipated."

"Yeah, no kidding." "I didn't think any of that stuff would happen." "Aye sir!"

Lucy then turned in anger at the trio of males playing cards in the corner. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE YOU HAVE YOUR OWN ROOM!"

"But we're a team, so as a team, we have to sleep in the same room." Natsu says.

Lucy sighed in defeat as she cried. "Why do I even bother, he already breaks into my apartment."

She then went back into the bathroom to change in privacy, then came back out in pajamas. "Still, this is all so surreal. To think, Sora has been doing all this on his own for about 6 years now…"

The others all looked down in thought, as Gray spoke up. "Yeah, each of us found our way to Fairy Tail when we were young, so despite having problems of our own, we all had someone there to keep us going."

"To not tell anyone a single thing about you, not even your magic abilities…" Erza looked out the window at the night sky, knowing a little about what he's been through.

"Well that changes now." They all turned to look at the determined look on Natsu's face. "We know now, and there's no way in hell we're letting him go through this alone anymore."

They all looked at him, determined looks adorning their own faces as they all silently agreed. Eventually, they all got comfortable and started falling asleep.

* * *

The next morning, Lucy wakes up with arms stretching and a yawn. "Man, that was a good rest." She then sat up and looked at the rest of the room, seeing Erza in the other bed with the boys stretched out all across the floor, dropping her mood a little. "Oh yeah, they barged in here…"

After getting changed, she then went and looked out the window, taking in the beautiful scenery and the peaceful skies. Looking down at the streets however left her confused, as she saw some people running away in the street.

"What the?" She questions, looking for whatever was making the citizens run.

That was when Erza stirred, and looked confused as to what Lucy was doing. "Lucy, what's wrong?"

"The people are running away from something, but I can't see what it is."

They then heard what sounded like roars, and Erza immediately requipped out of her pajamas and into her usual armor as she jumped out of bed. She then quickly kicked the boys awake. "Get up! Now!"

"Aye sir!" Natsu and Gray exclaimed, jumping into a salute as Happy rubbed his eyes open with a tired smile.

As they all quickly ran outside and in the direction people were running from, they halted at the sight before them. Standing in the middle of the street were large creatures seemingly made of stone and shaped like humanoid lizards, each one standing about a story tall. They were marching down the street and smashing anything in their way, seemingly heading for the train station.

"What the hell are these things?!" Gray's exclamation catches the attention of the beasts, as their eyes flashed red before charging at them, eliciting a yell of terror from Happy.

"Whatever they are, they want a fight, and I'm more than happy to give 'em just that!" Natsu exclaims, lighting his fists up and charging. "Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!" He struck one of the creatures right in the chest, creating a burst of fire and smoke, before revealing the creature looking no different from before aside from a blackened chest. As Natsu looked in confusion, the creature backhanded him away and next to Gray.

"Let me show you how it's done Flame Brain!" Gray then slammed his fist into his open palm. "Ice Make: Lance!" As the barrage of ice hit the monsters, halting their advance, Gray let out a confident smirk. Only for it to shatter with his ice as the creatures simply smashed their way through.

Erza strode in front of them, requipping into her Heaven's Wheel armor. "Allow me to handle this." She then summoned several dozen swords and spun them in a circle, before sending them to the monsters. "Circle sword!" She managed to inflict a good number of wounds on the beasts, but no matter how deep the scratches were, they just kept walking as if they were paper cuts.

Lucy gulped nervously at that. "Okay, maybe this guy can take em." She then pulled out one of her gold keys. "Open! Gate of the Golden Bull! Taurus!" The battle-ax wielding cow-man appeared from a flash of light. "Kick those things' butts!"

"Anything for you Miss Luuuucy!" Taurus called out in his accent and raised his ax against the nearest monster, taking an entire arm off. He and Lucy looked at the beast triumphantly as it stared at where its arm used to be, before glaring at Taurus with a roar.

"Oh come on, what does it take to bring these things down?!" Natsu yells angrily.

Erza examined the beasts before them cautiously. "These things must be golems of some sort. There must be someone, somewhere controlling them. We won't get anywhere simply trying to subdue these beasts."

"What do you suggest then?" Lucy asked, looking at the beasts somewhat nervously, staying behind Taurus.

Erza's answer was to requip into her Black Wing Armor, granting her more offensive power. "We'll need to go after them with the intent to kill. Hold nothing back against them until we find the one that controls them!

Natsu grinned maniacally at those words and burst into flames. "ALRIGHT, THAT'S MUSIC TO MY EARS! I'M ALL FIRED UP NOW!"

Gray then took off his shirt and gathered even more magic. "If we're going that far, then Ice Make," He then formed a large cylinder of ice and slung it over his shoulders, aiming it at the foremost creature. "CANNON!" He then fired a powerful blast of ice straight at the Golem, taking out its head and causing it to completely collapse. "Try to aim for their heads, seems to do the trick."

Natsu lead the charge from there, him, Erza and Taurus smashing and slashing at each Golems head, then moving on to the next one. Gray gave them ranged support with his cannon and made sure Lucy and Happy didn't get hit by anything. While they began their offensive, the Golems attempted to fight back by swinging claws and tails at the mages in front of them, and hurling boulders at the mages in back, but the mages of Fairy Tail were quickly gaining the upper hand.

After a while the Golems stopped trying to advance and even fell back a bit, something that confused the mages for a few moments, before they felt the ground begin to shake, the quakes getting stronger with each hit.

"Now what?" Lucy asks.

After a few more moments, her answer came as a stone giant about 4 stories tall rounded a corner and turned its gaze upon them. On its shoulder, they could see a man with shoulder length brown hair and a cruel look on his face and a bundle of some sort under his arm. "Oh, so you brats are the ones trashing my minions."

"Who the hell are you!?" Natsu exclaims.

The man smirked at them. "Call me Clay, and I have to thank you losers for making sure I could get what I came for." He then shifted the bundle, causing a part of it to fall away, revealing what was underneath.

Erza glared as they recognized what Clay was holding. "The Star Prism!"

Clay then re-wrapped the cloth around the Star. "When I had heard that a Star Prism was going to be displayed here, despite others being stolen twice before, I just knew I had to get at it before anyone else could. The value of these things seriously went up as collector's items when that happened, not to mention rumors that someone might have found a use for them other than being art." He then fixed them with an ugly smile. "Sure, someone else beat me to it, but imagine my surprise when I was walking by last night, about to go drink myself to sleep in frustration of being beat, and chanced to see a group of mages presenting this thing back to the curator."

"You bastard!" Gray sent him his own glare as the rest of the mages began to get angry, with Natsu practically snarling at the guy, completely on fire.

"Now then, if you little pipsqueaks would be so kind as to simply stay out of my way while I leave with the Prism and make my profit, I would greatly appreciate it."

"I don't think so you bastard!" Natsu yells, jumping at the man with a flaming fist. "Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"

Clay smirked from the shoulder of his golem. "Gigas, intercept" The giant the raised its right hand faster than they would have thought and took the attack in its palm, creating a spider-web of cracks across it. It then pushed Natsu back to his friends as the cracks bean to repair themselves before their very eyes. "I figured none of you would do so politely, so I guess this is the part where I exert a little leverage."

Gray narrowed his eyes. "What are you talking about?"

Clay then turned to the head of his giant. "Show them." The massive golem then lifted its left hand to where they could clearly see it, and they were shocked to see a civilian stuck in its massive grip. But none more so than Lucy.

"LORAL!"

The shopkeeper cracked their eyes open, then wide at seeing the mages. "Lucy! Help!"

"Let her go you scoundrel!" Erza orders angrily as the others get pissed.

Clay simply grinned. "Of course, as soon as I am out of town and you lot are nowhere in sight. But until then…" The Gigas then tightened its grip slightly, causing Loral to let out a cry of pain.

The mages looked at each other for several moments, uncertain of what to do.

At that moment, while he was laughing triumphantly, a small, clear yellow object flew in front of Clay, catching his confusion attention for a moment, before it burst into a bright light that blinded him and even affected his Gigas, shocking the mages and causing its rip to loosen around Loral for a moment, just before something hit it hard and shattered the hand. As Loral fell from the crumbling hand several stories up, she was grabbed bridal-style as her rescuer shot to the other side of the street and slid along the building, bypassing all of the smaller Golems and landing behind the Fairies. Turning to look at the newcomer, the mages saw an angry Sora, doled out in crystal Gauntlets, Greaves, and standing on his board with his left eye exposed to all.

"Sora!" Lucy cried out in happiness as the others began to either smirk or smile.

Sora then carefully put a shocked Loral on the ground. "Hey guys. A few Alert Lacrimas I set up around town let me know something bad was happening, so I hope you don't mind me jumping in."

"Not at all." Lucy smiles.

"You got here just in time." Gray smirked at him.

Sora nodded as he took in the Golems before him, and the annoyed look of the one controlling them. "So, anyone mind telling me what's happening?"

Erza nodded, quickly explaining everything that had happened since they got up. Sora narrowed his eyes as he took in the information, and looked straight at the thief. "So you're taking the Star this time? And took a hostage for good measure?"

Clay sneered. "Yeah I am. What of it?"

Sora narrowed his eyes in fury, while Loral and some of the people still in the area finally recognized the gauntlets and greaves he was wearing as being the same as the thief from last night. "S-Sora? What's…?"

"Loral." She stopped and looked at Sora's face, which hadn't moved from Clay or his Golems. "I will answer every question you have. But first, I have someone to teach a lesson to. Now please get somewhere safe, and take as many people with you as you can." Loral hesitated for a few seconds, before nodding and running off.

"Now then, you threatened a friend of mine asshole." Everyone then felt a menacing aura, promising incredible amounts of pain coming off of Sora, as he punched his palm and cracked his knuckles. "So now, I'm going to give you a piece of my mind!"

The Fairy Tail mages looked at Sora in surprise, feeling the magical power rolling off of him, Lucy and Happy slightly frightened by how scary he was at the moment.

Clay meanwhile just looked at him in mock fear. "Oh no, whatever will I do?" He then took a serious face and gave a command to his Golems. "Alright then, destroy them!"

As the Lizard Golems began to charge, the mages took battle stances once again, before stopping in surprise as Sora strode past the other mages and kept them behind him. "By the way Gray, you inspired this move." He then spread his legs into a firm stance, and held his arms out in front of him, hands closed and parallel to the ground. "Crystal Make," As the Golems were mere feet in front of him, he opened his hands, keeping them together at the wrist and palms facing the constructs. "Diamond Storm!"

A flurry of pebble-sized crystals then shot out from his palms at rapid speed, tearing apart the Golems like they were paper, turning every golem into rubble as well as the ones behind them. After a few seconds, all that were left were Sora, the Gigas, Clay, and the Fairies behind him, the later 2 groups with eyes wide open in shock and jaws nearly falling off their faces.

"Woah." Lucy and Happy breathed out.

"AWESOME!" Natsu cheers with starry eyes.

"Impressive." Erza states calmly, surprised at the power of the attack.

"He's good." Gray complimented with slight pride hearing that he was the reason for that devastating move.

Sora then shook his hands by his sides, a light sweat on his brow. "Damn, that had a lot more power to it than I expected. Guess I'll have to be careful about it and tweak it accordingly in the future. Now then…" He then turned to the Gigas, which had just finished repairing its left hand. "Help me with another experiment." He then knelt down with his left hand on the ground. "Crystal Make," Crystals then began to rapidly form and shape into a large shape that everyone instantly recognized. "Ballista!" The bow and bolt that formed with the construct then glowed purple, before Sora fired the shot. As it fired, the bow component was destroyed and the bolt was sent straight into the giant's left shoulder, detonating and getting the entire arm to start falling off.

Before anyone could cheer however, the arm then stopped falling, and began to float up and reattach itself to the shoulder. Sora, sweat on his brow from the new construct's creation, looked at the giant critically to try and see how it worked. Clay however, while a little flustered, quickly composed himself and sneered at the mage opposing him. "Nice try brat! My Gigas will repair itself no matter what you do! Take them down Gigas!"

The behemoth then brought up its good right arm and brought its fist down on Sora, who jumped back in time to dodge it, only the remains of the Ballista being destroyed. "I see. In that case," He then glanced back at the others now beside him. "You guys wanna help me bring that thing down?"

"Oh yeah!" Natsu exclaims, lighting his fists as the others gain their own look of determination.

As Sora gained a smirk, he leaned forward a bit. "Then let's kick this thing's rocky ass. Crystal Make; Water Board!" His usual board then manifested beneath his feet, as he then turned to Taurus. "Want a lift Mr. Cow-man?"

The spirit smirked before getting behind Sora with an arm on his shoulder, other arm holding his ax at the ready. Seeing the mages about to attack him, Clay turned to his Gigas in panic. "Stop them!" The golem then lifted its hands and gold-brown magic circles appeared, a series of stone projectiles shooting forth.

Sora surfed around the projectiles at great speed with Taurus smashing away the ones that got to close, while Happy carried Natsu through as he smashed everything that got in his way. Erza in her Black Wing armor did about the same as Natsu, and Gray created Ice Shields and Lances to keep projectiles away from him and Lucy while getting a few hits in of his own, eventually hitting the Gigas with enough ice that it was unable to move.

Seeing this, the others took their chance as Sora spun around, launching Taurus at the right leg and moving himself at the left leg with the tip glowing purple, while Happy took Natsu to the right arm and Erza went to the left. As each of them cleaved, smashed, and slashed clean through the 4 limbs of the giant, the ice across the torso and the intensity of the strikes kept the Gigas from repairing itself in time and it soon fell on its back as its limbs crumbled into nothing.

"Waaagh!" Clay landed in a heap as the Golem began to slowly repair itself. As he moved to get up, he felt a blade against his neck and looked up to see Erza holding a sword there, a look of fury on her face.

Meanwhile, Sora, Natsu and Gray had gathered on top of the Gigas' torso while Taurus went to make sure Lucy was alright. Natsu kept smashing away at the giant, watching the cracks he made repairing quickly while the other 2 tried to maintain the damage done by blocking the rubble trying to reattach with ice and crystal.

Natsu then roared in frustration. "Gagh! What does it take to make this thing stay broken!?"

"Not sure, but there must be some way to drop it for good. Anyone have any ideas?" Gray asked as he froze more rubble to the ground, seeing his ice start to crack already.

Sora looked about the golem, trying to come up with an idea, when he felt a sharp pain from his eye and knelt from the suddenness, hand covering it. "AGH!"

The 2 mages looked at him in concern. "You alright?" Natsu asked.

"Yeah, yeah, my eye's just been acting up since last night." He then opened his eye a little, fighting through the migraine that sprung up out of nowhere, blinked at what he was seeing, then widened his eyes in shock. "Oh no freaking way…"

Gray fired a blast of ice at some rubble that was starting to float up towards a shoulder. "What's up?"

Sora blinked again. "I think… I think I might be seeing THROUGH the golem right now!"

They both looked at him in disbelief at that. "Seriously?!"

"Either that, or I'm finally starting to go crazy. I'm going with option 1 for now." He fought through the headache, then spotted something around the center of the Gigas' chest. "And I think it might have helped me find found its weak point."

"Then just tell us where you need us." Gray says, blasting more rubble as Natsu let out a roar at some more, turning it to dust.

Sora nodded, wiping a bit of sweat off his brow. "You got it." He then held a hand up, creating a crystal spike up in the air. "Hit with everything you've got right… here!" He then dropped the spike as far as he could into the giant, reaching about a fourth of the way to where he found a gold and brown sphere.

Gray and Natsu took a look at it, then at each other, before smirking. They then jumped up, each preparing their attacks. "Ice Make; Hammer!" "Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"

As their simultaneous attacks hit the spike, it shot straight through the golem's chest, creating a massive spider-web of cracks along its surface, before it shattered and blew apart all across the street, the rubble no longer making any move to reform.

As people gathered to see the aftermath of the battle, the trio responsible for the final blow dug themselves out from the remains, giving each other victorious smiles while covered in dirt. Sora then started chuckling. "Hahaha, I knew it! You guys are awesome!"

"You're not so bad yourself!" Gray chuckles.

"Yeah, you were awesome dude!" Natsu cheers.

They all shared a few more laughs before they heard Happy flying over and Lucy and Erza walking up to them, a very beaten up Clay over Erza's shoulder. Sora paled slightly at how many bumps were coming from the top of his head, before shaking the thoughts away as Erza spoke. "Well done everyone. You finished off the golem rather effectively."

"Yeah, though it would have taken longer if Sora here hadn't found the weak point." Gray then smirked at the mage in question. "Guess he picked up a few new tricks."

Sora then rubbed the eye responsible. "Yeah, though I am still a bit surprised at how this thing was able to do that. Looks like I have a new skill to practice."

Lucy looked at him in mild surprise. "Wait, so your eye gained a new power?"

"Looks like. Though I am kinda worried about getting used to it. For the first few months of having this eye, it was pretty disorienting whenever it triggered telescopic vision all on its own. Now I'm a little more worried about what this one will do to me. Not to mention that this thing can give me migraines if I'm not careful about it." Sora rubbed his temple with a look of discomfort. "Seems like it's just a slight headache right now, but hopefully it doesn't take me too long to adjust."

"All the same, we thank you for your assistance Sora." Erza thanked him as she offered her free hand.

Sora took the hand to get to a standing position and shook it. "No problem." He then glared at the unconscious Clay. "That guy really pissed me off. You should never drag innocents into your selfishness."

The others sweat-dropped at his quick change in attitude as Clay let out a pain-filled groan.

Sora glared at him for a few more seconds, before shaking his head and calming down. He then took a look at some of the bystanders that saw him at work, including Loral who stayed close enough to watch, and let out a tired groan. "Urgh, this is going to be fun."

"Well, it was gonna happen eventually." Lucy says.

"Haaah… Doesn't mean I'm any less prepared for it. Loral is SO going to kill me for this." Lucy laughed nervously while Natsu and Happy laughed heartily, before the duo quickly shut up at the look Sora shot them.

Sora shook his head before spotting the bundle that held the Star Prism under some of the rubble. Quickly digging it out, he passed it to the mages. "Go get this back to the curator while I… speak, with Loral."

The mages nodded and walked off, Happy tossing him a "Good Luck!" much to the annoyance of the Crystal Maker.

Sora then turned around to see an angry Loral a foot in front of him. "Start. Talking. Now." Sora laughed nervously as he began to think about how to explain himself.

* * *

Sometime later, after the fairies had handed the Prism back to the curator, checking on the damage Clay had done getting it, and dropping off Clay with the authorities, they went to check on Sora.

They eventually found him with Loral at the magic shop, himself sitting in a chair behind the counter looking rather tired and Loral leaning against it next to him looking somewhere from annoyed to sorry.

"So, are you guys okay?" Lucy asks.

They both looked at them, not having noticed them enter, before Loral sighed and put a hand to her head. "I think so. I still can't believe he's a mage, let alone the one who was stealing the Prisms." She then looked back at Sora while gesturing to the contents of the store. "Though that does explain how good you are at all this." Sora rubbed his head nervously in response as he chuckled.

Meanwhile, Erza, Gray, Natsu and Happy looked about, seeing Sora's work for themselves. "Man, you weren't kidding about this guy's work. Hard to believe these were all done by the same person."

"I aim to please!" Sora says proudly.

Natsu then looked at him. "By the way, you figure out what your new gem-thingy was?"

"Oh yeah! Come here." He then got up and to the counter, everyone watching in interest. "Crystal Make; Amethyst Top." He then released a purple top that spun around, giving a faint glow, but otherwise doing nothing.

Everyone looked at it curiously, wondering what's supposed to happen, when Happy looked at Sora. "Sora, it isn't doing anything."

"Really? Huh. Mind picking it up for me?"

"Aye Sir!" Happy gave his usual cheer and reached to pick it up in his paws, only to be sent flying back quickly and into a wall when it burst, to everyone's shock and Happy's pain as he slowly slid down the wall upside down. "Owowowww…"

Sora held a hand to his mouth in a combination of slight regret and suppressed laughter. "S-Sorry, Happy. Heh, I didn't think it would be that strong, heheh." He then collected himself as Natsu picked up Happy and walked back over. "To answer your question, Amethyst appears to use "Force", in other words it's a type with high power." He then looked at the spot the Top was at in thought. "Though it apparently has a habit of being a one-shot-wonder. Haven't been able to make anything that works for more than one hit yet."

"Still, that's incredible." Sora looked at Lucy as she looked in wonder at where the top was. "Just one of those tops made Happy go off flying. Imagine what you could do with 2 or 3 of them…"

"While true, and definitely fun to think about what I can do with more, Happy is much lighter than a person. Might need more crystal mass or more concentrated magic in order to do the same to a person."

Natsu then got fired up at the thought. "Alright! Come on Sora, time for our rematch!"

Sora blinked for a moment, then started chuckling again. "Hehehe, maybe later Natsu. Kinda have a few things on my mind at the moment. Speaking of," He then looked at them with a serious face. "How is the situation with Clay and the Star?"

"Clay is now in the hands of the authorities, and the Prism is back where it belongs." Erza says. "We even managed to come up with an explanation for how the people saw you using magic, saying that it was the means of which you became so good of a crystal shaper, yet hating the spotlight and pressure that comes from being known as a mage. Hence why you only revealed yourself today."

Sora nodded. "Alright. Better than saying I was moonlighting as a thief, and at least Clay and the Star are taken care of." Sora then sat back down and leaned back in the chair, reaching a hand to his eye as it shifted from crystal to matching his right eye. "Though, now it's going to be a lot more difficult for me to move around unnoticed. Keeping my magic quiet is part of how I was able to do as much as I have, which means now it will be that much harder. Man, now what am I gonna do?"

The mages looked at each other, before Lucy had an idea. "Hey, why don't you join a guild?"

Sora looked at her and blinked. "Huh? Join a guild?"

"Yeah. If you did requests, you'd still be able to travel around, learning all you can about your magic and maybe even pick up a few new tricks. And if you had access to a guild's information, you might even find more Star Prisms than if you were simply going around and gathering rumors."

"Not to mention all the friends you'd make!" Sora turned to Natsu as he spoke up, and noticed that the rest of the mages were giving smiles of their own.

Sora looked back at the smiling faces of the mages, thinking about it. After a little bit, he looked down and closed his eyes. "I never really gave much thought to joining a guild. I'll need some time to think about it." He then looked back at them as he got up. "I think I'll head back to my place for now, I still need to work a bit on those Prisms."

Everyone nodded to him as Gray spoke up. "Want someone to keep you company?"

"Nah, I need some time to myself to think. The last 24 hours have been a bit crazy for me, I need some time to process it all. I'll see you guys later." With that, he left.

Loral let out a sigh when he was gone. "Seriously, that idiot really freaked me out with all this." She then turned to the others. "If I'd known that was him last night, I wouldn't have been so freaked when he stole the Star!"

Lucy put a hand on her shoulder in comfort. "Maybe he was scared that you wouldn't believe him, or you would turn him in?"

"I get that, but after all the business he's gotten me you'd think I'd garner at least a little trust."

"Maybe that's why." They all looked to Erza as she spoke. "He told you the full story, right? Even about his family?" Loral nodded. "Well, maybe he was worried of a repeat of history. Maybe he thought that if you did accept the truth, you might try to involve yourself somehow. And if something happened to you from there, then he would have blamed himself like he does for his family."

Loral held a hand to her head and closed her eyes. "So that fool was just trying to protect me? Jeez, he really is an idiot." She then shook her head. "Still, knowing him, I can believe it. To think, he's been dealing with all that this whole time…." She then fixed the mages with a serious look. "Hey, I need you lot to do something for me."

They all looked at her curiously, as Happy flew up and asked. "What is it Loral?"

She then smiled at them. "Take care of that idiot for me. I don't care whether or not he sticks with you all, but make sure at least that he doesn't get into too much trouble in the future."

They nodded, smiles on all their faces as Natsu and Happy answered for them. "No problem, we always take care of our friends!" "Aye sir!"

Loral nodded her thanks and they talked for a little while longer.

* * *

Several hours later, the mages had gathered for lunch at a diner in town before they were planning on going to check in on Sora, Natsu and Happy acting like gluttons once more to Lucy's dismay.

Shaking the thought out of her head, she turned to the others. "So, how do you think Sora is doing?"

Erza calmly continued to eat her own meal. "I'm quite sure he'll be alright. I believe he simply needs some time to think through all that's happened in the last 24 hours."

"Yeah, he's a tough dude. I think he'll be okay." Gray said.

"Thanks for the confidence guys." They turned in surprise at the unexpected voice to see Sora, who then quirked a playful eyebrow at how Natsu and Happy had been eating. "Wow, they always eat like that? Because the only time I've seen Natsu eat has been from my Ruby flames."

"His stomach could literally be a bottomless pit." Lucy says.

Sora chuckles a little at that. "Are you guys sure he's even human? Because I almost doubt that."

"Well, he was raised by a dragon."

Sora froze for a few seconds. "… Come again?" He then turned to Natsu, expression unmoving. "You. Raised by Dragon. Seriously?"

Natsu took a break from eating and grinned. "Yep! Igneel's the one who taught me my magic!"

Sora just blinked, before laughing hard. "HAHAHAHA! Oh MAN! And here I thought you guys couldn't get any more interesting!" He then chuckled a little more as he dropped a bag he had with him and pulled up an empty chair.

"So how are the fake Prisms going?" Gray asks.

"First of all, they aren't fake Prisms, they are 100% authentic. People just won't be able to tell the difference from one to another so they are more like replacement Prisms. As for my progress on them, I actually finished them last night."

They looked at him confused. "Wait, if they were finished already, why'd you leave?" Natsu asks.

Sora chuckled a bit. "Haha, sorry. I was just hoping to pack up on my own." Sora then nudged the bag with his foot. "It's about time I left town again, and needed to set some things up for while I was gone."

"You're leaving?" Lucy asks.

"Yeah, best to do it now before people began to question about whether or not I was the thief from last night. I do not feel like playing 20 questions with the entire town, hahah. I even gave Loral permission to use my place while I was gone, so long as she kept it quiet and took care of it. I put a lot of work into that place after all, and I need to be sure my family will be alright, seeing as I don't know when I'll be back."

"Where do you plan on going?" Happy asked from his position on a plate, half-eaten fish in his arms.

"Before I tell you that, can you tell me how far it is to Fairy Tai?"

"Um, just about 4 or 5 hours by train." Lucy says, making Natsu go green. "Why?"

"Hmmm…" Sora then leaned back and rubbed his chin with his hand. "Now why would a mage be asking for the location of a mage guild?" He then sent them a playful look.

They all looked at each other in thought for a moment, before Lucy gasped. "You mean…?" She trails off in shock.

Sora then grinned widely in response. "Think Fairy Tail would have me?"

The other mages widen their eyes, realizing what they were talking about. "You're going to join Fairy Tail!?" Natsu exclaimed.

"Hahaha, give me a reason not to! After all, I already have fun with you guys. Why not try my luck with the rest of your guild?"

Happy, Lucy and Natsu cheered, excited about a new person joining Fairy Tail, while Gray and Erza simply smiled. Sora smiled brightly with them, before grabbing a menu. "Now then, I really did put in a lot of work last night, not to mention the craziness of this morning. So I think I'll order something myself."

They then proceeded to eat for a little while longer, accompanied by light conversation, and they were later ready to take the train into Magnolia. As they were boarding the train, Sora looked over to a nervous Natsu. "Is he going to be alright? I am fully aware of his motion sickness after all."

"He's like this all the time when he gets on a train." Happy says as they got on the train.

"Okay then." Sora then found them a booth on the train and they all took seat on it, Lucy, Gray and Happy on one side, Sora, Erza and Natsu on the other, Sora and Happy at the window seats. "So, got any other fun stories to tell me?"

A while later…

"HAHAHAHAHA! You guys took an S-class quest WITHOUT PERMISSION?! HAHAHA!" They had been talking for most of the trip, letting Sora know about the sorts of things he should expect about the guild members and telling them about the different things they've done. They were just telling him about their trip to Galuna Island when he busted out laughing at their stunt. "I know I said you guys might be crazy, but this takes the cake!"

Lucy raised her hand. "In my defense, I tried to tell them no, but they knew exactly how to rope me into it."

Gray then raised his hand. "And Natsu literally tied me up with rope and tossed me in the boat when I tried to bring them back to the Guild Hall."

Sora chuckled some more and turned to Erza, who had the suffering Natsu lying in her lap. "And where were you in all this?"

"It took me a little time, but I eventually found a boat and tracked them down. Though at that point it was too late for me to simply stop them, so I helped them wrap things up before bringing them back for their punishment."

Aside from the green Natsu, the others paled slightly at the recollection while Sora laughed again. "Hahaha. Oh man you guys are awesome. I now know for certain that things won't get boring hanging out with you lot."

Soon, they pulled up at the Magnolia station and began to disembark, Sora and Lucy working together to haul a sick Natsu off of the train.

* * *

A/N: And that's a wrap! Starting in the next chapter, Sora will be a part of the regular story line. Feel free to tell me how I did, and allow me to give a shout-out to FanficCrossoverMaster15 for helping me plan out Sora's introduction to the Fairy Tail story line.

Also, I intend to only focus on events that occurred in both the manga AND the anime, since some of the "filler" arcs and episodes weren't to my liking. That said, I may occasionally mention some of the events that were comedic or awesome enough for me to include in this story, but please don't demand too much from me.

Anyway, thank you all for reading this story this far, and hope to see you in future chapters. Please leave a Fav or Follow, please let me know your thoughts via review or PM, and everyone have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!


	4. Meeting the Guild

Alright, time to post another one! This chapter will (sort of) start the Phantom Lord arc, as well as have Sora introducing himself to the guild. He might even see someone he knows… Anyway, onwards with the show!

Review responses

 **ahurtrojo1** : Glad you like this! The Phantom Lord arc will start soon, and good to know that Erza apparently has another vote. Still considering a few others, but rest assured I am leaning towards her now. Also, don't worry. You aren't the first one to call him Star on accident, and still got the point cross anyway.

 **pokeheroaadyn** : I agree, no growth is boring, and glad I made him crazy enough! That said, my next few chapters are already planned out, and unfortunately I did not write the Changeling episode. I honestly wasn't sure what to do with it, so I sort of settled for not doing it. That said, since this is Fanfic, I may simply change things so that it happens later in the series, when I actually have an idea of how I might do that. Hope you're alright with that.

* * *

"Man, that job was a blast!" Natsu walked down the path with arms behind his head as the others walked behind him.

"Not only was the client happy, but we found a potential new guild member!" Happy flew around like his namesake and looked at Sora, who was looking back at all of Erza's luggage.

Gray then turned to Sora. "Gotta admit, you were definitely way out of our expectations for when we took up the job. Not to mention that Clay fella."

Sora smiled at that. "Well if you guys had not been surprised by me, I WOULD have been surprised. Still, if Natsu hadn't been on the team, you guys might not have even noticed me, so I gotta hand him props for that."

"That's right! Our success is all thanks to me! What did you do, you stripper?!"

"What'd you call me you little ashtray?"

Before the two of them could get into their argument, Erza walked up and thrust their heads away. "Enough playing around." She then looked at Gray. "Put on some clothes."

Gray looked down in shock to see he was once again down to his boxers. "What the hell?!"

Lucy looked at them all with a small smile. "I may have originally wanted to do this request on my own, but considering what may have happened without the rest of you, I'll let it go this time."

"What do ya mean this time?" She looked at Natsu, who was smiling brightly. "We're a team, so as a team, we've got each other's backs. After all, we're Fairy Tail's strongest team!"

Lucy looked at the confident expressions on everyone's faces, before smiling brightly. "You got that right!" She then peeked back at Sora who was once again eyeing Erza's luggage. "Hey Sora, something the matter?"

He shook his head as he kept looking at the numerous cases stacked upon Erza's wagon. "No, nothing's wrong. It's just…" He turned to Erza quizzically. "What's with all the cases? It almost looks like you live like a nomad."

Erza blinked at him. "Of course not. They are filled with food and ingredients. I like to go prepared for if I should ever be lost and unable to find civilization. There's also Natsu's appetite to consider sometimes."

"… How long do you think you'll wind up lost?! And how bad do you think Natsu's appetite is?!"

The others just blinked at this, not actually having tried to ask Erza about her luggage before out of fear for the answer. Not a single one of them thought it might be food.

Sora just shook his head and lifted his hands in surrender. "You know what, never mind. I do not know what it is like in your head, so I will simply leave your decisions up to you. If it works for you, then it works."

Erza nodded at this and they all began walking again. "So, you guys are the strongest team? I thought you guys told me there were even stronger members?"

Lucy nodded at Sora's question. "Oh yeah, the words were first said by our friend Mirajane when Erza had Gray and Natsu join her for the mission that ultimately led to them taking down Lullaby. She thought that the three of them would be unstoppable and could take down anyone who got in our way." She then sweat-dropped as she remembered what happened after the mission. "But then everyone mentioned how there were way stronger members, and even Gray didn't buy into being called the strongest team at first."

"I see. Well, with the different types of magic you guys use, I'd guess you'd be pretty close to being unbeatable. Not a lot of people can prepare for fire, ice, blade, and spirit combinations. Not to mention the way you guys use your magic."

That got confident grins from the others as they made their way down the path, getting the attention of the locals. Sora looked around, noticing the kinds of looks they were getting. "Hey, do people always look at you all like this?" That got the others to look around, and soon they heard a bit of what people were saying.

"Are those Fairy Tail wizards?"

"They must not know yet…"

"I feel bad for them…"

Gray looked about in confusion. "This is unusual. Why is everyone looking at us like that?"

"I got a bad feeling about this…" Happy said in a not-him way.

"They're afraid…" Erza then spotted a shape ahead and stopped, getting the others to look as well.

Sora looked at the structure in the distance with confusion and worry. "Umm… Where about would you guys say your guild hall is?"

"… Right there… But… it doesn't look right…" They then hurried to where the building was and soon found themselves in front of it.

Sora wasn't sure what to expect when he first saw the guild hall, but seeing it look so trashed and busted was nowhere near what he had prepared for. Large metal columns stuck out like a demented pin cushion, making Sora very interested in what could have led to the building looking like it did now. The others were in a "slightly" worse state.

"What the…" Gray said in shock.

"What happened here?!" Erza spoke, a very serious look on her face.

"Wh-What the…?!" Lucy had a hand to her mouth in slight fear.

While Happy lay on Natsu's shoulder speechless, the fire mage looked at the scene in fury. "Our… Our Guild…!"

Sora could only look at the damage in thought. "What the hell could have happened?"

"Phantom…" The new voice brought their attention away from the hall and over to the speaker, a girl in a red dress with long white hair.

"Huh?" Lucy asked confused.

"What did you just say?" Gray asked curiously.

Natsu, not having turned at first, did so now, slowly and with a look of fury. "Did you say, Phantom?"

The girl didn't even look up. "It's frustrating to admit, but they got us good…" She then looked up, and was a little surprised to see Sora there. "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't realize you were there at first."

Sora smiled softly at her. "It's no trouble, really. Considering what seems to have happened, I wouldn't have been surprised if you were depressed to the point of complete silence." He then held a hand to her. "I'm Sora. You?"

She took his hand softly. "I'm Mirajane, but everyone just calls me Mira." She then looked at the others. "Everyone is gathering in the first underground floor of the guild. I'll show you the way in." They all nodded and followed her in silence.

After a short while, they were walking down some stairs and arrived at what looked like a makeshift pub. Looking around, Sora saw many figures he didn't recognize, but most definitely noticed that their faces all held looks of either sorrow or depression, or in a few cases anger and frustration. They eventually made it to the bar, where Sora saw a short old man wearing an orange and blue outfit that made him think of a jester. "Yo! Welcome back!" And was apparently drunk off his ass. He was in the back of the group and Sora could still smell the alcohol in his breath.

"Huh?" Lucy looked surprised at his attitude, while Erza spoke confidently.

"We have just returned."

Natsu then stepped forward and demanded answers. "Gramps! How can you be so carefree?!"

The old man took another swig as they were talking and looked at Lucy. "How was it Lucy? Did the job go well?"

Lucy hesitantly replied. "Uhh, yeah…"

Erza then spoke up before any more was said. "Master! Do you understand the current situation?!"

Sora's eyes widened as he looked at Erza, then the apparent master, then back at Erza. 'Master? This little old fella who is drunk off his ass is the master?! Wow, even now they keep surprising me.'

"The guild's been demolished!" Natsu said angrily.

Mira stood to the side a little worriedly as the master laughed a little. "Now, now. Calm down. It's hardly worth fussing over." He then took another swig.

"W-What?!" Gray and Natsu exclaimed simultaneously as Sora observed the Master.

The Master then lowered his mug. "Phantom, huh? Is that the best those fools can do? Dunno what they're so happy about, attacking an empty guild like that…"

"Empty?" Erza asked confused.

Mira spoke up then. "They apparently attacked at night."

"Then no one was hurt? I guess that's one thing to be thankful for."

"There's no point in fretting about people who can only do sneak attacks! Forget about `em!"

Natsu smashed a hole in a nearby wall at the Master's drunken words. "I can't agree with that! I won't feel satisfied until we've destroyed them!"

"That's enough of that subject. We'll handle our job requests down here until things are fixed upstairs."

"Th-This is no time for work!"

"Natsu! That's enough out of you!" Their little commotion began to draw the attention of the rest of the present guild members. As the Master looked drunk angry at Natsu, his arm stretched out, much to Sora's surprise, only for said shock to turn to a deadpanned look as it spanked Lucy's butt.

"Why _my_ butt?" Lucy said quietly.

Mira then pouted at the Master at his actions. "Don't make me angry, Master!"

The tiny master then retracted his arm and stood up cheerfully, before hopping down, much to Natsu's ire. "Gramps!"

"Just a sec. Nature calls…"

Sora watched the old man jog away to a bathroom, nodded, then looked back at the others. 'Yep, a crazy master for a crazy guild. Don't know what else I expected to see.'

Natsu looked down a little miffed. "How can Gramps be so calm about this?!"

"He isn't." Natsu and the rest looked at Sora, a serious look on his face. "How often does he drink to the point of actually being drunk like that? Because unless this happens at the drop of a hat, then he's drinking himself into a stupor to either keep himself from doing anything stupid, or to keep him from being too worried. I'm sure he has his reasons for not rising to the bait of the ones who did this."

"He's right Natsu." They then turned to Mira. "The master feels just as frustrated as you do. But the council forbids physical conflict between guilds."

"But they started it!" Natsu yells angrily.

"That isn't the issue."

Erza looked down in conviction as the others around her had their own looks of determination. "If that is what the master wants… then so be it."

Sora let out a long sigh as he looked about the room, until he saw someone he recognized. "What the… Loke? Is that you?"

The orange-haired mage in question, who was leaning against a wooden support, looked up as his name was called. As he recognized Sora, his face adopted a look of disbelief. "No way. Sora?!" He then got a light smile as he walked up to him. "Hey man, what are you doing out here?"

Sora smiled as he and Loke shared a fist-bump. "Haha, I was just about to ask you that. I didn't know you became a member of Fairy Tail!"

Everyone in the room who was paying attention looked at the two of them, surprised that a friend of Loke's that they didn't know was there. The people who had met Sora already were even more surprised, as evident when Gray spoke up. "Wait, Sora, how do you know Loke?"

The two grinned as Loke spoke for him. "Easy. You see these rings I use for my magic? Sora here is the one who fashioned them. Without them, I wouldn't be considered a mage. Best rings I've ever used, let me tell you."

Sora smirked at the praise. "Thanks man. Always happy to hear praise. Unless it comes too often."

Mira looked at Sora in surprise now, as did a few other members in the room as they slowly caught the attention of the rest of the guild. "Wait, you can make magic tools?"

Sora rubbed the back of his neck. "Not exactly. Just the crystals used as the catalysts, as well as the basic enchanting to make them work. I happen to be pretty good at shaping crystals of all sizes, even fully-sized statues if I have enough time. Even went freelance for a few years just wandering the country."

"Wow, you must be really good!" Seeing the smile on her face, Sora felt pretty good for distracting everyone for a little bit about what happened.

He nodded back at her. "People seem to think so. I've lost track of the number of offers I've gotten to stick around and have regular pay. But I had my reasons so I just kept turning them down."

"What kind of reasons? And don't just say wanderlust." Loke smirked at him, remembering those very words from when they met way back when.

"Well, for one thing, it was easier to practice without any prying eyes."

"Hmm?" Loke looked at him quizzically at that. "Practice what?"

Sora smirked at that and turned to the counter, getting behind it to the confusion of everyone but Team Natsu, who looked a little happy to see Sora showing off. He then rubbed his hands together before placing them over the counter, a white magic circle appearing on the counter. Everyone watched in amazement as crystals then began to form and shape until it looked like a small lion almost as tall as Happy, looking like it was in the middle of a roar!

Said cat then flew over to it and looked at it in awe. "WOW! This is the greatest thing you've ever made, Sora!"

Sora sweat-dropped at that. "Somehow, I think it's just because it's a lion, isn't it?"

Several members began to crowd around to look at the construct. Loke in particular looked at it in awe. "No way! I know you were able to work on magic crystals, but you didn't tell me you were an actual mage!"

"Of course not. It was too much fun watching people begging for my secrets, so there was no way was I going to spoil the surprise."

A somewhat short girl with short blue hair then leaned over the counter to get a closer look. "Wow, is this crystal?" She then looked at him in shock. "Are you a Maker mage like Gray?"

He nodded. "Yup. I'm a Crystal Maker mage. As such, I have a pretty good understanding of crystals."

"Wow… I've never heard of Crystal makers. And I've read a lot of ancient history and magic theory."

"Well, I have yet to meet another one, so you probably know only a little less than I do."

"Huh?" He then turned to a duo, one having a pipe in his mouth with a pompadour hairstyle, and the other in a white coat and purple hair, purple hair talking. "Then how did you learn your magic?"

"Ehehe, bit of a long story. But the short version…" He then let the crystal lion fade away (much to Happy's disappointment) and held a hand to his left eye, dropping the illusion and letting them all see his crystal eye. "Painfully."

The one who asked him whistled slightly while the other mages looked at him in sorrow or slight shock. One of the mages, who was a woman who appeared to be wearing the top part of a swimsuit in place of a shirt, spoke a little bluntly to him. "Sorry about this, but that eye looks both pretty, and not pretty."

Sora chuckled a little. "Yeah, I get that. The eye itself looks awesome, but thinking about what may have happened to the real eye must not be fun." He then blinked a moment, then looked flustered, looking straight up and blinking rapidly. "Ah hell, not now." He muttered.

Everyone looked at him confused, and Erza came around the counter to see what was wrong. "Sora? Is everything alright?"

"Yeah, yeah, everything's peachy. The new vision just decided it wanted to stretch its legs without asking."

"The new vision?"

Sora turned his head back to the bluenette, trying not to look at her. "Yeah, my eye may have a bad story behind it, but it comes with a few perks. For a while now, I could use it to see over long distances, or even to spot fine details along a small object, such as the crystals I worked with. But this morning, I picked up a new one, and I don't have full control over it yet."

"Which one is that?"

Sora then blushed slightly. "… I'd rather not say right now."

"Oh!" Natsu dropped his fist in his open palm as he remembered. "You must be talking about that one that let you see through stuff!"

'Damn it Natsu…' He then kept staring up, as the mages in the room processed what Natsu said, before looking back at Sora and the look on his face. Then some of the female members looked at their own outfits, some feeling slight amounts of embarrassment, while swimsuit looked amused.

Sora tried to distract himself from the different feelings he was sensing from the others in the room and tried to get a handle on his new vision, so he looked at what was left of the hall upstairs through the ceiling. He could tell that it was once a pretty awesome place, despite now being thoroughly trashed. 'Man, someone really did a number on this place.'

"Dude," Loke looked at him with a smirk. "Are you telling me, that if you wanted-"

"I could give every female here a reason to kill me? Maybe, but I prefer living as opposed to creating an angry hoard of female mages. Besides, it causes headaches if I'm not careful." He then blinked a few more times before it finally stopped. "Finally, that is still a bit disorienting." He then rubbed a hand over his eye.

"Haha, man, that is a fun skill. By the way, what are you even doing here man?"

Sora looked at him with a grin, before looking over at team Natsu. "Do you guys want to say it, or should I?"

Happy flew up before anyone could even say anything and shouted "Sora wants to join Fairy Tail!"

Silence, before the guild erupted in shouts of joy and disbelief. Mira then walked up to Sora with a bright smile on her face. "You really want to join Fairy Tail?! Even after seeing what's happened to this place?!"

"Well, your master isn't exactly wrong. If those guys will smash your hall when no one's around, then they don't have a lot of guts. Besides, I know a thing or two about breaking laws, and so far, all they've done is vandalism. This is nothing compared to other stuff they could have done."

Mira looked at him questioningly. "Wait, why do you know about breaking laws?"

Sora blinked at that, before adopting a sunny smile and waving it off. "That's a story for later, don't worry about it." He then promptly ignored the looks Team Natsu was sending him. "So, is there a process for joining the guild?"

Mira then looked down dejectedly. "Not really, but our tool for placing guild marks was destroyed in the attack. I'm afraid we can't make it official without that."

Sora shrugged. "Oh well, then I'll just be an unofficial one until it gets replaced. How's that?"

She perked back up at that. "Are you really okay with that?"

"Why wouldn't I be? You guys seem to be a lot of fun from what I've seen, so as long as I get to hang with you guys, all's well for me."

"Is that so?" Everyone stopped a little and cleared away for Sora to see the master from before, walking over a little more calmly and seeming a bit soberer. "Sorry for the late introduction, I didn't quite notice you at first." He then held up his small hand. "I am the third master of Fairy Tail, Makarov. What did you say your name was?"

Sora smiled at him and knelt slightly to reach his hand. "It's Sora. Sora Hoseki. Nice to meet you Master Makarov."

"I see." He then held his hands behind himself, still a little red in the face. "I am sorry that your first look at Fairy Tail is in its current state. That said, as soon as we can, we hope to welcome you as family. Therefore, as the master, I feel it is my duty to tell you that I view every member of this guild as my precious children. Phantom may have destroyed our hall, but my children are alright, so it doesn't matter to me. The hall is just a hall. It is the people in it that make a home. A family."

Sora smiled at Makarov's words. "I understand sir. I myself have a similar ideal. I wouldn't dream of joining a guild of any other sort."

"Well said, lad. I'm sorry we can't yet induct you into the guild, but I suppose a mark can wait. For now, simply enjoy yourself and get to know your new family."

Sora nodded at him. "Yes, master."

At that, everyone cheered a little and began introducing themselves, Sora working to remember everyone's name so quickly.

"Ah, hey!" Sora then took a break from meeting everyone and looked at Natsu, who looked like he was ready for a fight. "You still owe me a rematch, Sora! Come on, let's fight!"

Erza then smacked him in the head. "This is no place for a fight you fool."

"She's right." They all looked at Sora, who had a smirk on his face. "But I do owe you a rematch. So how about we go somewhere where we can let loose?"

Natsu looked up at him in joy. "Seriously!? Alright! I'm fired up now!"

Meanwhile, the rest of the guild looked about in anticipation.

"Natsu's getting into a fight with the new guy?"

"I wonder how good he is if Natsu is demanding a rematch?"

"I gotta see this!"

Sora took a quick look around, glad that agreeing to this has gotten everyone to perk back up and ignore the current events a little. With that, everyone began to file out to find a good spot for the match.

* * *

A while later, Natsu and Sora were in the middle of a clearing, the rest of the guild watching from the sidelines. Swimsuit girl, who Sora now knew was named Cana, was sitting on a barrel with a blackboard and a bowl of cash. "Alright, place your bets! Will the winner be Natsu the Salamander, or Sora the new guy!"

Sora just sweat-dropped at this. "Is she seriously setting bets on this? Man, this place is crazy." He then shook his head with a small smile. "Then again, I'm asking to join these guys, so I must be just as crazy." Looking at Natsu, he then grinned. "Oh, and Natsu? Just to keep things fair, I'll try to avoid using your motion-sickness against you, and I won't use my Ruby powers. No eating for you, and no fireproofing for me. Sound good?"

"Sounds fine to me, now let's do this!" He then slammed his fist into his palm, making flames burst out.

Makarov, looking soberer, walked to the edge of the clearing, a smile on his face as he stood between the fighters. "This will be a friendly bout between Natsu and Sora! This will go until either I decide a victor, one of them yields, or something else forces us to stop. With that, let the match begin!"

He then hopped out of the way as Sora held out his arms and spread his legs. "Crystal Make," His arms and legs began to glow, quickly decking them out in crystal armor. "Gauntlets, Greaves!" He then brought his arm up to catch a blazing fist from Natsu as the two of them grinned.

The mage in the white coat, Macao, looked at his magic in surprise. "So this is how the kid fights. He uses his magic to make armor for himself. Not bad."

The mage next to him with the pipe, Wakaba, nods. "Yeah, another melee type mage has a fair chance against Natsu. But I hope that isn't all he's going to try and do."

Sora then pulled Natsu's fist to the side and attempted a swing at him with his free hand, to which Natsu maneuvered out of the way and brought his leg up to kick him, foot blazing. This sent Sora back a few feet before Natsu tried to charge after him.

Creating a crystal mace, he swung it at the ground as it glowed blue, creating a wave of water that swept Natsu away before he could get close.

Aside from Natsu's teammates, everyone watched the move in shock. The short blue-haired mage, Levy, looked at the display in awe. "No way! How did he do that!? I thought his magic was about crystals?"

"It still is." She and her teammates, Jet and Droy, looked at Lucy as she stood next to them. "Sora's magic is unusual. He's apparently able to use his crystals to create other elements, so long as he's unlocked the right gem-type with his magic. He currently has 4, but he just told Natsu he wasn't using Ruby, which would give him fire."

"You gotta be kidding me!" "Maker Magic that makes more than one element?!"

Levy looked back at Sora as he was once again engaging Natsu. "Wow. That actually sounds a bit like my Solid Script magic. I didn't think that sort of Maker magic was possible."

Lucy nodded at this. "Yeah, really surprised us when we learned about it."

Natsu and Sora had been trading blows for a bit now, each blocking or dodging the other's attacks, before Sora held up his mace, let the head glow purple, and slammed it into the ground, creating a shockwave that sent Natsu flying back. "Waaaaagh!"

Sora then looked at the mace and noted that the part that had glowed was completely shattered. "Damn, this is a strong one. Still need more practice I guess." He then reformed the mace, let it glow completely purple, then grinned as he wound it back. "Hey Natsu! Bet you can't catch this!" He then hurled it at the recovered slayer.

Natsu grinned back in challenge. "OH YEAH?! Bring it!" He then let the mace come to him, and held his hands out to catch it. But the moment it touched his hands, it burst into an even greater shockwave that knocked him back once more, as well as making a number of the mages present try to keep from being knocked back at the force.

When Natsu got back up, Sora laughed at him. "Hahaha! Geez Natsu, I guess you did catch that. You sure proved me wrong."

Natsu blinked, before looking at him angrily. "Hey, you tricked me!"

"Well duh. We're sparring. Why would I hold back? I know you can take it."

"Fine then!" Natsu then spread his legs and began to inhale. "Fire Dragon's…"

Sore widened his eyes, recognizing the stance, and formed several tops in each hand and had them glow blue.

"ROOOAAARRR!" Natsu unleashed his roar attack as Sora tossed his tops against the ground, creating a massive wall of water that rose to challenge the flames, holding back half of it before the other half powered through, the smoke and steam hiding Sora's position and condition.

Natsu looked back at the smoke and eagerly awaited the result. "Did I win?!" At that moment, a hard impact hit the back of his head, sending him to the ground and Sora appeared behind him, holding a mace over his shoulder.

"Come on man! That could have hurt someone… I mean, other than me!"

Loke blinked as Sora appeared out of nowhere. "Wait, did he just turn invisible? How did he do that?!"

"It is also part of his powers." Gray stepped up next to him. "One of the gems he unlocked gave him access to Light magic, and one of the first things he learned to do with it was to bend light around himself to render him invisible."

"Nice!"

Cana smirked from next to them on her barrel. "So, you're telling me this guy can not only look through objects, but also go anywhere he wants undetected? Man, this guy has all the powers a young man could want to get to know the opposite sex REALLY well." Everyone around her did a pratfall before she turned her attention to Gray. "Your clothes are gone again."

"Awe man!"

Natsu then got himself up and wiped his chin as he looked at Sora with a grin. "If I held back, I wouldn't consider this a proper rematch!"

Letting out a sigh, Sora just looked at him. "And if someone else here got hit by that?"

"Meh, Fairy Tail mages can handle it. We already get into full-blown brawls every other day." Natsu then lit his hands once again. "Now let's get back to it!"

Sora smirked, then shrugged his shoulders. "Eh, might as well." He then spun his mace around before he and Natsu charged each other. Before they collided, Sora jumped over him, creating his board and propelling himself along the edges of the clearing. "Think you can keep up, hot-head?"

Natsu grinned. "You're not getting away with that! Fire Dragon's Wing Attack!" Natsu then flung his arms about, sending flames every which way in hopes to get Sora with area rather than accuracy.

Sora leaped with his board and spun it around, blocking the flames coming at him with a burst of water, but obstructing his vision long enough for Natsu to get in close with a surprise attack. "Fire Dragon's Talon!" Natsu's flame-coated kick was strong enough to send Takumi off his board and into the middle of the clearing, where he leaped up off his back and moved away from a punch delivered by Natsu, cracking the ground and giving him time to take his own swing at him.

After a while of trading blows, Natsu had grabbed Sora's weapon and Sora had grabbed Natsu's fist, now stuck in a deadlock trying to overpower each other. Sora smirked at this. "You know; this feels oddly familiar."

"Oh yeah? How come?"

"Because I got into a deadlock like this with Erza. Remember how I got out of it?" Natsu's face dropped a moment from those words, trying to remember, before the mace glowed brightly, hurting his eyes and making him recoil before Sora smacked him in the torso and knocked him away.

When he got up, Sora was swinging the mace around tauntingly. "Oh now you're gonna get it! RAAAGH!" Natsu then seemed to get even faster than before, and hitting even harder. Sora did what he could to avoid the attacks as direct hits, but he wasn't able to keep it up forever and was soon knocked back just as much as he had sent Natsu.

Getting up, they shared a grin as Sora dispelled the mace and cracked his knuckles. "Alright, this is fun! Thanks for helping me test so many things. Mind if I do another test on something?" He then held his arms out and a large magic circle formed underneath him. "Crystal Make," Several pillars then formed around him and slowly took humanoid shapes. Soon, there were 3 crystalline figures standing around Sora, each a different color. "Centurion!"

Natsu looked at the creatures in surprise, as they each then formed a shield and sword and began to charge at him. Smirking, he lit his hands on fire and met them halfway, throwing a fist at one of the figures, but being shocked as it disappeared! It then reappeared behind him and kicked him into another one, who's shield glowed purple and bashed him with it, creating a pulse that knocked him back and into a roll, while destroying the shield. As he tried to get up, a surge of water blasted into him, as the third one was pointing its sword at him with the water surging forth.

Meanwhile, as everyone was watching the display in awe, cheering for both sides, Sora kept his hands out and a bead of sweat came down his forehead. 'Man, this is harder to maintain than I thought it would be. Least I'm not trying for 4…'

After a while, Natsu let out a war cry as he burst into flames, the water quickly evaporating. The second construct then glowed purple as the first one vanished again. It then charged at Natsu as he had begun walking through the surge with a hand up to keep it away from him.

As it came within a foot of him, he swung his fist and released a burst of flames that sent it flying back, bursting as it hit the ground and making a shockwave that rocked into Sora. The remaining 2 Centurions ceased moving and using their abilities as he recovered, with Natsu taking the opportunity to smash them both before they could do anything.

Natsu then ran after the recovering Sora as he held a hand up. A bright light shone before Natsu, who quickly covered his eyes so he could keep running. He then stopped when he ran into something and opened his eyes in surprise. They then widened in shock as he stared right at a Ballista of crystal, a large blunt bolt in it that was glowing purple (which was just about touching his stomach), and Sora giving a tired smirk. "Oh boy. This is gonna hurt, isn't it?"

Sora nodded. "Most likely." The ballista then fired, taking Natsu out of the clearing and out into the nearby woods. After a few seconds…

*BOOOOM!* Those present could feel a small wind blowing out though the trees, and Sora created his board again to go see the damage. As he got to the blast site, he was surprised at the damage the attack had done. There was now a small crater in the grass and the trees that had been in the blast zone had been knocked to the edges, knocking down a few more trees almost like dominoes. At the center of the impact site, Natsu was laying on his black with white eyes and an open mouth, twitching ever so slightly.

As some of the other mages moved in to see what happened, Makarov hopped to Natsu's side and took in his condition. He then stood up straight and raised an arm. "The battle is over! Sora is victorious!"

Cheers went out from among the mages, having enjoyed the match. Cana and Loke cheered even louder, having been among the few to bet on Sora.

Sora meanwhile, sighed happily, and walked over to and fell down beside Natsu, giving a tired laugh. Smirking, he let his gauntlet glow blue and drop a bit of water on Natsu's face to wake him up. Sputtering, Natsu sat straight up, looking to see Sora next to him. "Makarov called the match. Just relax now man."

"WHAT?! Are you saying I lost again?!"

"This time, yes. But hey, it was a close one. If you hadn't run right into my Ballista, you might have had me."

"Urgh." Natsu then collapsed again, before laughing alongside Sora. "That was a blast though."

"Definitely. Haha."

They then saw Happy flying over to his partner. "Natsu, you lost again. Sora is way stronger than you!"

"Say what?! No he isn't! I'll definitely get him next time!"

"Aye!"

Sora laughed some more, before seeing a hand reached out to him. Following it, he saw Loke, a smile on his face. "Man, I didn't know you were good enough to give our resident Dragon Slayer a run for his money. Way to go man!"

Taking the hand and standing up, Sora smiled back. "Thanks Loke. It was a bit of a close one though. Next time, I won't be going easy on him."

"Wait, you went easy?!" Sora looked at the shocked and standing Natsu with a smile.

"Natsu, if I were to seriously try and take you down, I'd just do what I did last time. Remember that?"

Natsu thought about it, before his face went green.

The rest of Team Natsu and a few more mages came in close to congratulate the duo for a great fight, and Gray walked up to Sora. "Nice to know there's someone else who can put Ashtray in his place. Nice work."

"What'd you call me you stupid walking pop-sickle?!"

The two then butted heads and began another argument. "I think you heard me you loud mouthed Pyro!"

Erza then pushed their heads away hard enough for Sora to hear a crack, slightly putting him off. "Enough!"

Sora chuckled at the sight. "Hahaha, man this place is awesome."

"I know, right?" Loke agreed with him.

Loke laughed a bit with Sora, as Lucy walked up. "So, what now Sora?"

Loke noticed her and immediately backed behind Sora, looking at Lucy in fear. "I'm sorry."

"I haven't even done anything yet!" Lucy looked at him in annoyance.

Sora just looked back at him as he cowered from Lucy. "Seriously? Celestial wizards STILL freak you out?"

Lucy looked at Sora in shock. "Wait, Sora, do you know why Loke is like this?! Please tell me you do!"

He shook his head. "Sorry, no. I did put quite a bit of work into creating the rings he requested, but one time there was a Celestial mage in the same shop and he freaked. Not my place to ask him, even if he likes my work."

Lucy sighed at this as Mira walked up, accompanied by a tall man with large muscles and similarly white hair. Sora remembered he was Mira's little brother (despite his larger size), Elfman. "That was incredible Sora! We're more than shocked at the sorts of things you can do!"

"And the way you fight is that of a true man!"

"Thanks guys, though I probably should have waited to try out that Centurion spell. Really drained me."

"Well that's just another thing you've learned." They then turned to Master Makarov, who had a mug of alcohol with him. "Now that you know a bit more about your magic, you can tinker with and improve it to accomplish even greater things. Magic isn't something that comes naturally, you must work for it with every aspect of your being, and in the name of what you hold dear."

Sora's eyes widened, before smiling warmly at Makarov. "Thank you Master. I really do feel those words." He then stretched his arms out and looked at the sky that was beginning to gain an orange tint. "That said, I also feel a bit tired from the match, so I think I'll go and find a place to stay for the night."

"I'll go with you." Loke offered. "I'd actually like to talk more about the rings you made me, and maybe if it were possible for you to improve them. I did just make a bit of money off of you, hehe."

"Sounds good to me, but I'm entitled to a bit of that money." He then looked over at the girl who also made a bit of money off him. "That goes to you too Cana! I expect at least 10% of your winnings!"

"Sora, you just paid my tab up to the next month. You've got a deal!"

Laughing, he looked to Team Natsu. "You guys don't mind if I go and catch up with Loke, do ya?"

The others shook their heads. "Nah, we should be fine without you. Just don't get into too much trouble alright?"

Sora looked at Lucy in mock hurt, a hand at his chest dramatically. "Lucy, your words wound me! Who do you think I am?!"

"Considering how we met, do you really want us to answer that?"

Sora blinked at her rebuttal, then held up a finger. "No comment." He then turned and walked into town. "Come on, Loke! You and I have business to discuss."

"Oh, that there is a story here that I absolutely NEED to hear." He then ran to catch up with Sora as the others began to either wander back to the hall or head home.

* * *

"HAHAHAHAHAAA! So THAT'S how you met Natsu and the others?!" Loke and Sora had been walking for a little while, looking around for apartments or homes for rent, while Sora told the story that Loke had asked for. Sora had found a few candidates, even a few that were for purchase. He had his eye on one that was for sale in the outskirts that was 2 story with a basement. Loke pointed out that it was pretty pricy, but then Sora told him how much was in his bank account, making him nearly trip into the canal. Never say it doesn't pay to work freelance.

"Yup, swear to god. I still can't believe Natsu's nose was that good."

"That, I can believe. The part I wasn't expecting was that you were moonlighting as a thief all these years! Hahaha, you really are full of surprises."

"You're one to talk," Sora looked around for any onlookers, before turning back to Loke with a small smile and speaking softly. "Mister leader of the Zodiac."

The one formerly known as Leo the Lion of the Celestial spirits looked down with a sad smile. "Yeah. Thanks for not saying anything back at the guild. Hehe, though did you really need to make a lion out of your magic?"

"Yeah, well, I did promise not to tell anyone. And that trick was just to remind you that I knew, and to see if anyone else did. Guess you still have a little while."

Loke fiddled with the ring on his hand. "Thanks again for these rings. They've definitely made things a bit more comfortable for me, as well as buy me a little more time."

Sora shook his head slightly. "Yeah, well, I tried the best I could. Containing Celestial energy isn't easy. I'm just glad I got to meet you again." He looked back at the fallen star. "So, have you figured out a plan?"

"… Of sorts…"

When he didn't continue, Sora stopped walking as his eyes widened. "No way, don't tell me you just plan on passing away!" Loke then stopped, but didn't turn to him. "You have GOT to be kidding me. You haven't even looked into a way to return haven't you?"

Loke sighed. "I've told you what happened, and I've told you about how Celestial Law works. They are absolute."

Sora sighed. "Seriously man, isn't it even a LITTLE possible to argue your sentence?"

Loke just shook his head. "That's just it. I don't want to overturn it. It was my fault about what happened. I kept her from being at full strength. I drove her into taking that job out of desperation. I killed her."

"The way I see it, that was manslaughter at most, not murder. Sure, she may have died. But it wasn't your fault! You couldn't have known she would go and do something like that."

"Sora." Loke then turned to him, a sad look in his eyes. "Just stop. Even if I didn't accept my punishment, there is no way to overturn something like this. I'm going to die, and there's no stopping that."

Sora stared at him, then sighed in defeat. "Man, you really are an idiot. Then again, I suppose it isn't quite my place… Come here."

Sora then took the hand that had the ring on it and placed his own hand above it, creating a magic circle underneath. "You may not want to live anymore, but I do know that the lion has his pride. You won't let your life end until the absolute limit. So," He then released Loke's hand. "I can at least make sure you live long enough to stop being so freaked out by Celestial wizards like Lucy and maybe find some manner of peace. Both the attack magic and sustaining magic are now twice as strong as before. Be advised, I still think you are being a complete and utter fool about all of this, but seeing as I don't have any other ideas, I guess I have no choice right now. I keep my word, and I promised not to tell until you were good and ready."

Loke looked back at Sora in shock, before giving him a genuine smile. "Thanks Sora. Really."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Now come on, I want to check out a few more places before choosing one." They then started walking again. "And seeing as I already know your past; I think it's only fair that I share a bit of mine with you. You aren't the only one who's made a mistake that cost others everything after all."

* * *

A/N: And so the day ends. Sora meets the guild, finally gives Natsu his rematch, and Sora apparently met Loke in the past. To those of you questioning what the heck is going on there, it will be fully explained in a later chapter. Anyway, I sort of planned to introduce Sora at this point in the story from the start, thinking I could have more fun with this before Sora would start getting a reputation, making him someone Phantom wouldn't expect.

And to anyone who complains about what I said Erza's luggage held, the creator Hiro Mashima himself said in an interview that it was food. Search online if you doubt me.

Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed the duel between Sora and Natsu. Took me some time before I was satisfied with it, especially in trying to discern how much control he had over everything. The Centurions may make a return later on, but for now they will just be something Sora experiments with, seeing how much strain they took for him to use.

Now then, let me know what you think in whatever way you decide to. Every little bit will go a long way to help me and my stories improve. See you all next time.


	5. When a Good Guild Goes to War

Alright, a lot of good things so far for this story. Glad to have all the support I seem to have. Now, I hope you all enjoy how I'm getting Sora involved in the battle with Phantom.

Review Responses

 **ahurtrojo** : You are welcome, and will indeed continue!

 **Guest** ( **Adrian** ): Yes, I was able to translate it correctly the first time. Glad to hear you like this story so much! Having Sora be able to create an intelligent pet might be tricky, as he currently can't make anything too complicated, but maybe in the future because that does sound fun. I do have an idea for a small OC arc I can put Sora through soon, but another one after the Tenrou island arc might be interesting as well. Will definitely take it under consideration. As for OCxErza, since no one else is suggesting a different one, I think I will work towards that one. All in all, thank you for the review, and feel free to leave more in the future.

 **pokeheroaadyn** : I do plan on that Centurion spell being used in the future, though it may be a while. As for the bit about the clothing, I mostly put that in there as a little gag and to demonstrate that he still doesn't have full control over all his abilities. Feel free to forget about it, because I will likely never mention it again save for someone messing with him about it.

* * *

After he and Loke walked around a while longer, Sora set his decision for acquiring the 2 story with basement he found before. He quickly got in touch with the real-estate agent and went about setting things up and put in a bid to hold it, and would be paying the rest once everything was setup. It would take a while for them to finalize everything, so until it was done, Loke said he could stay with him for the time being.

The next morning, Sora was out for a stroll back towards the Guild, taking a scenic route to become more familiar with the city while Loke went straight there. After a while, he noticed people rushing in a direction. Getting a bad feeling, Sora ran after them. Coming to a park with a massive tree at the center, Sora looked and was shocked at the site before him.

High up the trunk of the tree, Levy, Jet, and Droy hung unconscious as their arms were held by metal braces, the symbol of Phantom Lord painted onto Levy's stomach.

Sora stood there, frozen, for several minutes. Then his face adopted one of fury. He soon noticed that Natsu and his team were at the front of the crowd, their own looks of horror and anger present. He then saw Master Makarov walking through the crowd, but gone was his orange jester-like outfit. Now he wore a white jacket with a furred collar and edges, a blue circle with a cross on the back. The symbol of the Wizard Saints.

He came to a stop behind the others, and looked at what had happened to his charges. "I can stand being reduced to a run-down beer hall… But no parent can stand idle while the blood of his children is spilled!" The grip he had on the staff he brought with tightened to the point of shattering it! This display had Lucy frightened, as magical energy and pure anger rolled off Makarov in waves. "This means war!"

In full agreement with the master's words, Sora strolled up to them and to the tree. Not letting this continue any longer, he created a platform and rose it to Team Shadow Gear's level, surprising the others as they hadn't noticed him in their shock.

The crystal mage then closed his eyes and brought his hands together, slight sweat on his brow, causing some crystals to rise and form from the platform and carefully around the waists of the wounded mages, before glowing a soft, clear yellow. As the light spread through the mages, Sora separated his hands and opened his eyes, creating a crowbar in his hands. "Well said Master. Go on, I'll get them down and to a safe place. I need to practice my healing abilities after all."

"I-I'll stay and help you." Lucy then climbed the steps he had created and stood beside him. "Levy is my friend. I'm not going to leave her here."

Nodding, Sora handed her the crowbar and made one for himself. He then turned to look down at the others. "Natsu! I'll be busy here, so make sure to take out at least as 30 of them for me. Any less, and I'll give you a ride on my board for 5 minutes for every one you miss! Now go kick their asses!"

Natsu nodded, before he and the others went to mobilize the guild. Meanwhile, Sora turned back to Shadow Gear with Lucy and their crowbars. "Alright. These are in pretty deep, but it's still just nails and a strip of metal. We'll pry the nails out, then the crystals will keep them from falling. Once their all down, I'll reverse the creation of the platform and slowly lower them to the ground." He then turned to the crowd. "Hey! What are you all standing around for?! Someone get us a cart already! Anyone who gives us their cart to use will be compensated, so hurry up!" Roughly half of the crowd ran off in search of a cart while Sora and Lucy went to work.

* * *

Several hours later, Sora and Lucy had gotten them to the city hospital to be treated for their injuries. They had healed a little as they got them down, and Sora managed to create a kind of Citrine Lamp in order to pour more healing magic into them, placing one at each of their beds. The staff had tried to stop him for legal reasons, but the look on his face told them they'd have better luck talking down a monster.

Sora and Lucy were sitting in the room waiting for them to show any sign of getting better. Lucy looked at each of them in worry. "Droy… Jet… Levy…" She then looked out the window, staring at the ruined guild hall. "Phantom really does horrible things…"

Sora sat facing the door. "Fairy Tail may have a reputation for breaking things, but Phantom Lord is filled to the brim with rumors of their personalities. Especially the one who must have done this. Black Steel Gajeel."

Lucy clenched her fists closed at the name. "The others told me about him last night. Phantom Lord's Iron Dragon Slayer. Why did they do this?"

Sora sighed. "I wish I had a good answer for that. Everyone knows they don't get along well with Fairy Tail, but this is going too far!"

"… I promised her she would be the first to read my book when it was ready…" She then clenched her teeth as she began to cry. "They're… unforgivable!"

Sora closed his eyes as he let her cry for a bit, before she got herself together. "Sorry."

"Don't be. We all need to cry every once in a while."

"Yeah." She then got up. "I need to go out for a bit. Stretch my legs and all that. I think I'll also take the opportunity to get some groceries."

Sora nodded at her. "Okay. I have some Lacrimas set up to keep Levy and the others safe just in case. Also, hold on to this." He then tossed her a Lacrima the size of a bead. "Keep it on you at all times. If something happens, it will notify me. I don't trust Phantom to not be up to something right now."

Lucy nodded, before leaving the room. "I'll be back when I can."

Half an hour later, Sora still kept his eyes trained on the door, waiting either for Lucy or someone else from Fairy Tail to come back and check on Shadow Gear, or for a member of Phantom to walk in and try anything. Hearing a noise, Sora turned and saw Levy stirring slightly, as an eye cracked open. "Wh… Where…"

Sora got up and walked in sight. "Easy Levy, take it slow. You're in the Hospital right now. You were hurt pretty bad."

She trained her eye on him. "... Right… What about…"

"Jet and Droy are here as well, right behind the curtains to your right. They have yet to wake up, though it looks like they'll be fine."

She gave a weak smile at this. "Thank goodness… How is… everyone else?"

"Well, Lucy was here with me keeping an eye on you three until a little while ago, needing to stretch her legs. As for everyone else," Sora looked to a clock in the room. "I imagine they are waging war right about now at Phantom's closest location."

Levy's eye widened slightly in shock. "W-What? But Master said…"

"He said, that he was alright so long as none of his children were harmed. Now look where we are." Sora smiled softly. "Now get some rest. I made sure this place will be safe, and you know your guild mates better than I do. They'll seriously kick some ass for all 3 of you."

She smiled at those words and gave a small nod in thanks, before going back to sleep.

Sora went back down to his seat, feeling better now that one of them had woken up, and let out a sigh in relief. "Man, this is beyond brutal. I almost wish I had gone as-"

He stopped as something in his pocket began to stir. Reaching in, he pulled out a Lacrima of similar size to the one he gave Lucy, and saw it flashing red. Eyes widening, he got up, and left the hospital.

* * *

Once he left the hospital, he immediately hopped on his board and used the Lacrima to point him in the direction of where the other one was. After some time, he was in an area that looked like a badlands, rocky outcroppings everywhere like spikes or teeth, still racing ahead but with no idea where he was going. "Damn it, I knew something else was going to happen! Man, where is she!?" He then jumped over yet another large outcropping of rock, then spotted a flash of pink and a floating ball of blue. "Hey, don't I know those colors?" He then spotted a surge of fire from right behind the pink with the sounds of someone begging for mercy. "Yup, gotta be him."

"I told you, I don't know! Seriously! Ouch!"

"If any more of my friends get hurt… I might just-"

"Ah, Natsu!" Natsu broke from threatening/barbequing the Phantom Lord member he was dragging to looking at Happy, who was pointing at something behind him. "Look!"

Raising an eyebrow, Natsu turned and was surprised to see Sora speeding over to them over the outcroppings. "Huh? Sora?! What are you doing out here?!"

Sora pulled up right next to them and looked at the nearly burnt Phantom Natsu was still holding onto. "I would guess the same thing you are." He then looked at Natsu. "You hear about Lucy?"

Natsu regained his dark look again. "Yeah. I overheard Gajeel as everyone else was beginning to retreat like wimps from attacking Phantom Lord. They apparently kidnapped Lucy while we were fighting!" Natsu then turned back to the member he was dragging along, making him wince in fear. "I was just about to get some 0information out of this grunt when you showed up."

Sora blinked, then looked back at the grunt with an evil smirk. "Oooh? Sounds interesting. What did you have in mind?"

"Well, I was just going to keep him on fire until either he tells us what we want," He then glared at the guy he was dragging. "Or until he turned to ash!"

"EEEEEEK! I don't know! Really! I dunno who this chick- I mean lady- of yours is!"

"Oh, really?" Sora then knelt down next to the guy. "Well then, if you won't be able to tell us even a little detail," Sora then covered his hand in a ruby gauntlet and held it out in front of the grunt. "Maybe I should add some fuel to the fire so you cook even faster?" A surge of fire then shot straight out of his palm as the grunt paled in terror of both fire users looking ready to burn him alive, Natsu and Happy looking slightly excited about the idea.

"Ah, good idea Sora! That way, we won't need to hear his screams as long."

"Why, thank you Happy."

"Aye!"

"AH! Um, oh! Our Headquarters! Our He-Headquarters are just up the p-path! If members of our guild really did take her, th-then they probably took her th-there!"

Sora then let the flames die and his gauntlet faded from red to clear, as he gave the grunt a sunny smile. "See? Now was that so hard?"

Natsu then dropped him. "Seriously, about time you gave us something."

"Aye!"

The grunt then looked at them pleadingly. "S-So, does this mean you'll let me go?"

Sora nodded. "Of course! You now get a free pass out here!" The grunt's face lit up. But before he could say anything, Sora's gauntlet glowed purple and he punched the guy in the gut, hitting him so hard he passed out seconds later from the pain as the gauntlet faded away. "So feel _free_ to _pass out_ right _here_." He then stood straight and looked at the other 2 seriously. "Alright, let's get going." They all nodded and Sora got back on his board as Happy picked up Natsu.

After a while of traversing the path, Sora checking his Lacrima every so often to confirm they were going the right way, they spotted a structure out in the distance. They then got into a position near the perimeter and looked about the place, Happy looking at it nervously. "Natsu, Sora, this place gives me the creeps."

Sora just looked at it critically. "No kidding. The place has no heart or feeling in its design. It's just so damn simple in appearance."

Happy looked at him in disbelief. "THAT'S WHAT YOU HAVE A PROBLEM WITH?!"

"Hey, I'm a craftsman. After wandering around as long as I have, you start to analyze everything. Really, this place is so dull."

Happy didn't even have any words for that while Natsu looked about, sniffing the air every once in a while. "I'm not too certain, but I think Lucy is around here somewhere."

Happy then landed on Sora's shoulder. "Hey, why don't you use that peeping power you have to find her?"

Sora slammed the back of his hand into Happy's face. "Don't call it that you damn cat! But not a bad idea, assuming I can keep it under control." Sora then focused his magic into his eye and let the illusion around it drop, focusing on how it felt to look through objects. After a few minutes, he was able to see through the stone. "Okay, I got it working. Here's to hoping I don't strain myself with this."

Natsu grinned maniacally. "Alright! Once we know where she is, we'll kick the ass of everyone in our way!"

Sora grinned at the mental image before chastising him. "As strong as you are, I'm not too sure you're ready for a Wizard Saint." Sora, using the Lacrima to guide him a little, turned to the tower on his left and looked through it, ignoring Natsu's comments on how he was definitely ready, and spotted Lucy in the top room with another person in purple clothing, complete with a wide-brimmed hat and… were those wings? "Okay, I think I found her."

Natsu stopped arguing and looked at him expectantly. "Really?"

Sora then cringed as Lucy somehow made the guy turn around, before striking the weak point of every male. "Urgh! Yup, that's probably her. Top of that tower there. Problem is, I don't see any stairs to get there and someone else is in the room as well."

"WHAT!? LUCY, I'M COMING!" Natsu yelled this out and began to run at the tower, Sora and Happy looking at him with sweat-drops.

"Hot head."

"Aye."

Sora then looked back up at Lucy to see her at the opening to her cell, then watch her jump backwards. "What the hell?! NATSU! SHE'S FALLING FROM THE TOP, CATCH HER!"

Hearing this, Natsu looked up and ran even faster. "LUCY!" As she continued to plummet, Natsu roared out as he ran, and when he deemed himself close enough, he launched himself and grabbed her, the both of them flying towards a broken down brick wall that Sora and Happy headed towards.

"Lucys are falling out of the sky!"

"Enough with the jokes, are they okay?"

When the dust cleared, Natsu was under Lucy, his face muffled by her breasts. "Man, that was insane…"

Lucy just looked down at him happily, hands tied behind her back. "Natsu… I knew you'd be there!"

Sora jogged up next to them and created a knife, bringing it to the bindings on Lucy's wrists. "Let me guess, it was the way he was shouting, wasn't it?"

Lucy pushed herself up when her hands were free and looked at Sora in surprise. "Sora? What are you doing here?"

He then pulled out the Lacrima he was just using. "Told you I'd know if something bad happened. I'm just glad to have run into these two on the way here." He then straightened up as Natsu pulled himself to his feet and dusted himself off. "Alright, now what?"

"If Lucy's alright, we should head back to the guild like the others!"

"Huh?!" Natsu looked down at Happy in anger. "This is their headquarters! In that case…"

"But Erza said to retreat!"

"She's a wimp then!" Natsu got down in Happy's face at that. "I'm not scared of these guys one bit!"

Sora looked away from their argument with a sigh and looked at the guild headquarters in front of him, keeping an eye out while stray thoughts entering his head as he looked at it. Eventually, an idea that felt rather interesting popped up in his head and left the corners of his mouth twitching.

Before he could voice anything, soft spoken words broke through his train of thought. "I'm sorry." Sora, Natsu, and Happy all looked at Lucy in confusion as she tried to hold back tears while kneeling on the ground. "I'm so sorry…" Her hands gripped the edges of her skirt as she began to tremble slightly. A tear then landed on the guild mark on the back of her hand. "It's… It's all my fault…" Natsu just made a noise of confusion as she continued to cry. "Even so, I still want to be in the guild…" She looked to them, tears streaming down her face. "I love Fairy Tail!"

Natsu and Happy looked at her in worry. "O-Oi! What's going on?! What are you talking about?"

"Lucy?"

Sora merely narrowed his eyes as she continued to cry, thinking about what she was talking about. 'Is she saying, they did all this, just to get to her? What in the actual hell?!'

"Then just stay with us. What's the deal?" Natsu asked, still confused.

Happy looked back at Natsu while he was floating. "Natsu… Let's go back…"

The fire mage rubbed the back of his head nervously. "Y-Yeah… I guess we gotta…" He then walked over to Lucy and began to help her up. "Here, Lucy. Get up."

"You shouldn't pull her up so hard!" Happy chastised.

"Uh, I'll carry you on my back then. Okay?"

Lucy just began to cry even more, freaking the two of them out. "Look! You made her cry!"

"I-I did not!"

Meanwhile, Sora was once again staring at the guild building. "You guys go ahead. I need to take care of something. I'll catch up later."

Happy and Natsu looked at him in confusion as the blue cat floated up to him. "What is it?"

"I'll tell you later. Just get moving. It shouldn't take too long." Sora then strolled over to one of the walls as the others cautiously began to leave.

Sometime later, Sora was messing with something on the roof of the building when he felt an intense amount of magic power coming from the room Lucy was in. Seeing as he was nearly done, he took a quick peak with his eye and saw the same guy from before, but could now see an emblem for the Wizard Saints acting as a brooch at his coat collar. 'Oh crap, she kicked the guild master there?! I need to hurry up and get out of here!' He then went back to what he was doing, but then it began to rain a little.

Looking up, Sora was surprised to see large rain clouds when there were previously none. "What the…? That was way too fast for a normal weather pattern. Is this…?" He then heard a window opening and turned his head to see a blue-haired woman with a pink umbrella and blue clothing, a rain doll hanging around her neck. "Uh oh."

"Drip, drip, drop." The woman began to speak, opening the umbrella as she stepped out onto the roof. "Yes… Juvia is a rain woman. What matter of person are you?"

Blinking owlishly, Sora thought fast. "Decorator. Was told this place could use some personality, so I was outfitting the place to look flashier."

Juvia of the Element 4 looked about the roof to see some crystals embedded into the roof, before glancing back at him. "Juvia was not informed as such. Who was it that told you so?"

Sora blinked again, trying to think, then came to a decision. "… Ah, screw it. Diamond Storm!" He then unleashed a flurry of crystals to try and knock the woman back into the building, but was shocked to see them go right through her as her body became water to ignore the attack! "Okay… Didn't see that coming."

"So you are an enemy? No matter, your magic is ill equipped to deal with Juvia's Water Body. And it is Juvia's duty to eliminate any and all enemies. Drip, drip, drop." She then held up a hand. "Water Nebula!" A surge of water then shot forth, quickly consuming Sora from sight and shooting out past the boundaries of the perimeter. Keeping it up a little longer to be safe, Juvia was shocked to see Sora pop out of the vortex right in front of her, and even more so when his blue-clad fist struck her body and sent her back through the window!

Sora latched onto the side of the building to stop his fall as the gauntlet shifted to clear. "Holy crap! I knew Sapphire let me move through water easily, but I didn't think it would work that well with SURGING water! But it at least let me get through her defense as well..." He then hauled himself up and checked on the last crystal he was setting up, then grinned. "Alright. Everything is set. Now…" He then formed his board and shot off. "To get the hell out of here!"

As he shot off, he glanced back and snapped his fingers, getting a very satisfied look on his face with the results, before going to catch up to Natsu and Happy.

* * *

After meeting back up with them and being very evasive at their questions, they continued to make their way back to the guild, Lucy continuing to merely cry and be unresponsive to their questions throughout the trek back to the guild.

When they got back, they got an update from the rest about Makarov's condition, Lucy and Sora shocked to hear that he had been drained of his magic and collapsed. Bisca and Al had taken him to an old friend of his who stayed out in the forest for treatment, while the rest began to regroup. After hearing what happened, Lucy spilled the beans on her circumstances, being the runaway daughter to a business tycoon who hired Phantom to bring her back. She apologized profusely and endlessly to the shocked guild members, but much to her surprise it merely spurred their spirits and they began to prepare even more.

Sora was helping Wakaba with the explosive Lacrimas they had stockpiled, checking their quality and modifying them as best he could to give them just a little more kick. The smoke mage looked at him with a smirk. "Didn't know your magic could mess around with Lacrimas as well. What other tricks do you have up your sleeves?"

Sora smirked at the older mage. "Not too many more that you guys aren't already aware of. I may have a few secrets of my own I'm not too comfortable with sharing, but that holds true for just about everyone." He then focused back on the Lacrima he was holding, causing it to glow softly as he modified it.

"Fair enough. A lot of the mages that join up with Fairy Tail have some pretty bad pasts." He moved some of the modified Lacrimas into a bag and pulled a bag of un-modded Lacrimas closer. "There are actually quite a few here that joined the guild as runts without any other family to call their own."

"That's just what this guild is." They both turned to Macao as he looked at them from the map in front of him. "A place for the lost and weary to call home and have the family they couldn't find on their own."

Sora smiled and nodded at those words, before going back to the task before him as Wakaba looked right at the fire mage. "Just so you know, once Sora here is finished, I'll be taking all the explosive Lacrimas with me."

"So long as they don't blow up in our faces, I won't argue it."

"It's good." They both looked to Sora as he held up the Lacrima and the Fairy Tail symbol flashed on its surface. "I made it so only someone with a Fairy Tail guild mark can activate them. They won't be going off accidentally, and once thrown, they'll blow up against the next surface they touch. And if it so happens to be too close to another Fairy, then it SHOULD just drop to the ground inactive until used again."

The two of them were feeling pretty impressed, until they picked up on one of the words. "Should?"

Sora shrugged. "Hey, it's not like I ever tried something like this. The only thing I can actually guarantee is that they'll have a bigger Boom than before." He then placed it in the bag with the other modded Lacrima and stretched his arms. "Give me a minute to rest, I don't usually mess with this many Lacrimas at once." They nodded and he wandered over to where Natsu, Happy, Gray, and Elfman were standing around, Lucy sitting on a barrel.

He got there in time to see Gray looking over at her. "What's the matter? Still feeling uneasy?"

Lucy continued to look at the ground sadly as they all paid attention to her. "No, it isn't that… It's just… I'm sorry…"

"Well, it's the destiny of rich daughters to be targeted by people. And men are duty-bound to protect them." Elfman said proudly.

"Don't say stuff like that!" Gray chastised.

Happy walked up to and looked at her pleadingly. "But it came as a shock to me. Why did you hide the truth, Lucy?"

"It wasn't that I was hiding it. I was a runaway, so I just never really wanted to talk about it…"

"Makes sense." They turned to Sora as he walked up. "I never really liked the idea of talking about my past either. It may not be the same as yours, but I do understand not wanting to talk about something that makes you sad to think about it."

Lucy nodded gratefully before looking down again. "Yeah. Thing is, he didn't care about his daughter being gone for a year, but then suddenly he wants to drag me back… My father really did all this to bring me back… He's the worst!" Sora leaned against a nearby pillar as she kept going. "Still it was my running away that caused all of this…"

"That ain't right! Your dad's the one to blame!" Elfman stated, getting Gray and Sora to turn to him.

"You idiot!" "Seriously man?"

Elfman quickly realized what he was saying and tried to recover. "Oh, I mean Phantom is!"

Lucy just kept going as if she hadn't heard them. "I never thought my selfish actions would cause you all so much trouble… I'm really sorry… This would all end if I went home, wouldn't it?"

"I dunno about that…" Lucy looked up at Natsu in confusion, seeing the smile on his face. "I just can't see you being called "Lady." If _anything_ suits you, it's laughing in this filthy pub and freaking out while on an adventure." Lucy looked down again at his words as he took a step towards her. "Why would you go back to somewhere you don't want to?" Lucy gave a surprised reaction to those words, as Natsu kept going. "You're Lucy of Fairy Tail. _This_ is where you belong." Natsu stated, as if it were always true.

Lucy didn't know how to respond to those words, and simply sat there, starting to cry.

Gray and Elfman began to get nervous at that. "Ah, don't cry. It ain't like you."

"That's right! Men are weak against tears!" Elfman said as he began to shake.

"I can't help it." Lucy said through her tears

"Well put man." Natsu grinned at Sora's compliment. "Although, I don't think it would matter if Lucy went back now anyway."

They all looked at him in confusion. "What do you mean by that?" Gray asked.

Sora rubbed the back of his neck. "Well, for one, while Lucy was being held prisoner, she apparently kicked Jose in the unmentionables while trying to get away."

They all processed that for a few seconds, before Lucy paled in horror of how pissed he would be and the boys started trying to hold back laughter. Well, except for Natsu. "Hahahahaha! Now that's what I'm talking about! No "Lady" would kick someone there!"

Lucy then turned to Natsu angrily. "Shut up, you idiot!"

Sora laughed with the others, glad to have gotten her to stop berating herself for the moment, and simply talked with them for a little while, before the ground began to shake.

"W-What's that?!"

Al then came running down the stairs leading in. "OUTSIDE!"

They all quickly ran outside, and came to a sight they never thought they would. Sora even rubbed his eyes to make sure he wasn't hallucinating or something. "… Well… Damn…"

Natsu looked at the sight in shock. "Wh-What is _that!?"_

They were all staring at the sight of the Phantom Lord Guild Headquarters, the ground beneath it having been lifted by a series of large metal legs that carried it across the water. For a moment, that was all that the guild of Fairy Tail could focus on, until something else caught their attention. Across the surface of the roof and walls, large spikes were jutting out every which way, making the guild look like a large porcupine or hedgehog.

"It's a walking guild!" Happy shouted.

"Phantom?!" Loke said.

"Wh-What do we do?!" Wakaba said shakily.

Erza looked at the thing in shock, still wrapped in a towel from taking a shower minutes ago. "I never anticipated that they would attack like this…!"

Lucy looked at in both shock at its presence, and confused at its appearance. "Wait, where did all those spikes come from? It didn't look anything like that when Natsu and Happy were getting me away from there."

Gray then tilted his head to the side as he looked at the damage that was done. "Hang on, don't those look like they're made of…"

Everyone present slowly turned their head at a certain mage who was trying to whistle innocently at their stares. Sora then glanced in their direction, then looked up and rubbed the back of his head. "Well, it wasn't like the conflict was going to get any worse, considering everything else." He then looked back at the legs of the walking guild in thought. "Though if I knew that they could do that, I might have tried to make it harder on them to do so before leaving."

Everyone looked at him in disbelief, not thinking he would trash a guild hall, before the thing stopped, getting their attention once more, coming to a resting position as it dipped in the water a little. A section of the guild then opened up, and they were all shocked once more to see a large cannon then slide out, extending to its full length.

Sora's eyes widened in shock. "You gotta be kidding me! They have a Jupiter Cannon?! Are they NUTS?!" The cannon then began to charge energy.

Erza turned to the rest and took charge. "Not good! Everyone get down!" She then turned towards it and ran to the edge of the cliff, shocking other members of the guild.

"Erza!" "What are you doing!?"

As she ran, Erza was enveloped in light, then came out in silver and blue armor, 2 large half-shields on each arm as she looked at the cannon with determination. "I won't let you destroy our guild!"

"Adamantine Armor!" Happy announced.

"Don't tell me she's going to take the blast herself!" Bisca shouted.

"Not even armor as powerful as that can withstand it…!" Al said.

"Stop this Erza! You're going to die!"

Sora meanwhile was tuning all this out as he focused within himself, then knelt and placed both hands on the ground. Light then shone from the ground going from Sora, to the edge of the cliff, surprising everyone. As the light reached the edge, it branched off in two directions, going along the edge for 10 meters in each direction. When it stopped travelling crystals began to emerge as Sora pushed himself. He'd never tried anything of this scale before, but damn if he wasn't going to try!

As the formation of the structure ended, everyone saw a raised platform 2 meters tall, with stairs leading up in front of Erza. On both sides of the platform, walls of similar height went out as far as the light had traveled, with a small pillar rising up every so often until there were 4 equally spaced pillars on each side, rising an extra meter up with a sphere at the top. Every inch of the structure was made of soft yellow crystal.

Erza looked back at Sora in confusion, only to see him with sweat on his face and a look of determination of his own. "Get on the platform now! The cannon is about to fire, and I'm not letting you do this alone!"

Looking at him a moment longer, she nodded and ran up the to the platform, the cannon now nearly fully charged. As she reached the middle of the platform, she shouted back to the rest of the guild. "Get down!"

"Erza!" Natsu tried to get up there to stop her, but Gray held her back.

"Natsu! All we can do right now is have faith in Erza and Sora!"

Sora smirked at those words, before looking directly at Erza. "Quick, bring out the barrier in the armor!"

"Right!" Erza then brought the 2 shields together, creating a large green magic circle. As it appeared, the pillars closest to Erza shone at the tips, then the next pair. This went until all 8 pillars were shining. The outermost then fired light inwards towards the pillars next to them. A second beam went from those pillars to the next ones, even brighter than the last. When it got down to the last two, they each fired nearly blinding light at Erza's barrier just as the cannon fired. Before impact the magic circle doubled in size, and received an outer layer that was just as thick as the inner layer but a bright yellow, the entire thing now being 4 times as wide as the one Erza had originally created.

As the energies of the barrier and cannon clashed, Erza noticed how the energy didn't feel as strong as she had felt when it was charging, and held her position easily. Everyone who was watching noticed this as well, and was amazed at the strength of the barrier before them, some turning to Sora who was partly responsible for it. Even Erza stole a glance at him.

They then noticed how much strain was being put on him. His form was shaking as if in a whirlwind, hair flying about as magic energy surged around him. Sweat was covering his face and arms, and teeth clenched in effort as he worked to maintain the construct as long as he could. The illusion around his eye had long gone away, and was even glowing with the colors of the rainbow as he pushed himself. There were even a few people who thought they saw similar lights coming from under his shirt.

Lucy saw this and fear raced across her face. "Sora! What are you doing!?"

Sora turned his head and smirked at her and the others. "What's it look like?! I'm testing a new idea!" He then returned his attention to Erza, who was glancing back at him. "DON'T look over here! That barrier will only last as long as you maintain your own!" Erza's eyes widened, before she nodded and looked back at the energy rushing towards them and putting more magic into her barrier, hoping to alleviate some of Sora's burden.

After several more moments, the energy from the cannon faded away, and Erza let her barrier go, requipping into her standard armor and rushing to Sora, who had released his hold on the platform and walls and fell onto his back as they began to fade. Several others ran to his side as he lay there panting, Natsu leading them. "Sora! Say something!"

"… hah… Holy… hah… Hell… hah… I need… hah… more practice… hah… with that one… hah…"

Loke helped him to sit up. "Hey, Sora, you okay man?"

Sora flashed them all a weak grin. "Hehe… Never better…"

Macao looked at him and Erza in shock with the rest of the guild. "Wh-Whoa… They stopped it…"

"We're saved… Those two were really something…" Elfman said.

Cana looked at the state Sora was in, and looked at Erza. "But look at what happened to Sora. Imagine what might have happened to Erza if he weren't here…"

Gray looked back at the crystal, slowly fading away. "What the hell did you do there?"

Sora took a few deep breaths before answering. "New idea I had recently. I call it the Citrine Palace. It's a barrier enhancing construct. Depending on the size of the construct, I can theoretically make a barrier that can stand against anything."

Erza caught on to what he was saying. "That explains it. When I was holding up the barrier, I didn't feel even half of the full power that should have been behind that blast."

He nodded slightly at that. "That's the idea. Only issue I had was in trying to make it that big, and trying to keep up the enhancement as long as I could. I was lucky that Citrine is my primary type, or that might not have gone as well as it did."

Erza then slapped the back of his head, which stung since it was now armored. "That was still a foolish thing to do! What if you didn't have the power to sustain such a thing?! You could have exhausted yourself for nothing!"

Sora smirked at her through the ache. "Says the girl who was about to shoulder the entire thing all on your own. How were you certain you'd be fine after taking a blast like that?" Erza's silence was all the confirmation he needed. "That's what I thought. Sorry, but with the master gone and other S-class wizards not here to help, you are currently the strongest mage present. As such, there's no way I'm letting you wear yourself out at the start of the battle." He then smirked at her as he continued. "Let the new guys have that role."

They all then heard a loud voice coming from the mobile guild in the water. "I must say, that was rather impressive." They all turned to look at the structure that had launched the attack, each of them with their own looks of anger. "I didn't think there were any among you rabble who could stop my Jupiter Cannon's assault so well. I may have expected Erza to stop the blast, though I would have guessed that she would have been knocked out of commission, and yet it seems she had a bit of help. This wouldn't happen to be the same unknown trouble maker who damaged my headquarters, now would it?"

Sora smirked before donning a crystal gauntlet, then raised it up and let it shine, letting Jose get a good look at him from the throne he just knew the bastard was sitting in and shouted as loud as he could. "Yup, that would be me! You like the remodel I gave your place?"

"Hmm, you are certainly strong for your apparent age. I'm told you even managed to knock one of my Element 4 away while you were meddling with my base." The rest of Fairy Tail looked at him in surprise at those words. "Tell me boy, why don't you join my guild? Fairy Tail will be no more pretty soon, so why not join the winning team?"

Sora blinked a few times, before furrowing his brow. "Did he just try to recruit me after insulting, threatening, attacking, and kidnapping my friends?"

Happy raised an arm. "Aye!"

"Hmm. Then I think I have my answer." He then stood up, shakily but supported by Loke and Erza, walked forward so he could be seen clearly, stared right at the mobile guild, then flipped them the bird. "Screw you Jose! I'd rather go to hell then then work under a bastard like you!" His actions got a few chuckles, cheers, and quite a few grins from the Fairy mages.

"Hrgh. Impudent brat. No matter, I have already disposed of Makarov. Victory is beyond your grasp. Hand over Lucy Heartfilia. This instant."

Those words ignited a fury from the guild. "The hell with that!"

"What guild would just hand one of their members to the enemy?!"

"Lucy is one of us!"

Similar shouts of agreement shot from the entirety of the Fairy Tail guild, as Lucy looked down guiltily.

"Hand her over!" Jose's voice came out once more, but was nearly drowned out amongst all the voices from the familial guild. Amidst it all however, Lucy began to cry at what she was putting her friends through, just because of her father wanting to bring her back.

She was snapped out of her thoughts, at a declaration from Erza. "We would rather die than betray one of our own!"

Lucy looked up in shock as the entire guild gave a loud war cry. "Our answer won't change, no matter what!" Natsu roared at Jose. "We're gonna destroy all of you!"

As everyone continued to shout and cheer, Lucy began to cry tears of happiness and covered her mouth to try and stop her sobs. This went on for several seconds, before Jose's voice went out in anger. "In that case, I'll give you an even bigger taste of the Jupiter Cannon! You have 15 minutes until it recharges! Tremble in fear!"

This got the guild to calm somewhat as they processed the news.

"W-What?!"

"The Jupiter Cannon?!"

"He's gonna fire it again?!"

Erza looked back to Sora. "How long until you can create another Citrine Palace?"

Sora shook his head to clear away some of his fatigue. "Okay, not gonna lie. I don't think I can pull off that trick again in 15 minutes. I haven't practiced that one enough. Or, at all really."

She nodded in understanding. "Alright." She then looked back at the cannon in question. "I can probably manage to hold it off once on my own, but without the enhancement I can't say I would be any help afterwards."

At that moment, a number of figures flew out the windows of the guild building, and began to fly their way over to the mages on the ground, shocking many of the mages and getting Sora to instinctively use his eye to get a closer look at what was coming their way. "As the young brat wishes, I will now prepare to show you hell, Fairy Tail. You've only two choices left. Be destroyed by my soldiers, or be eradicated by the Jupiter!"

Macao looked shocked at what he was saying. "Unbelievable! He'd kill his own men with the Jupiter too?!"

"H-He's bluffing! He won't shoot!"

"He doesn't need to bluff. Those things are expendable." Macao and Wakaba, and some of the others looked at Sora in shock as he stared at the creatures coming their way, analyzing them with his eye. "Those things look like they were created from magic, nothing more than drones created to do their master's bidding."

Cana grimaced at those words. "Jose must have made them with the Shade magic he's known for."

Bisca and Al looked at the creatures in shock. "Wait, Shades!?" "They're ghosts!?"

Sora smirked a little. "And me without my exorcism equipment. I might be able to whip something up for the shades, but I would need a few minutes."

Erza looked away from the encroaching enemies and at the weapon still aimed at them. "We still need to do something about the Jupiter Cannon. Another blast will be too damaging to us."

"I'll take it out!" Natsu punched his palm as he declared his, filled to the brim with enthusiasm. "15 minutes right? I can do it!"

Sora smiled at him. "With your track record, there's no contest. You could break the unbreakable."

Erza nodded at that. "Alright, get moving."

Nodding, Natsu ran to the edge of the cliff. "Happy!"

"Aye sir!" As Natsu launched himself off the cliff, Happy flew by and grabbed him, flying him straight past the Shades and right at the cannon.

Gray and Elfman began running as well. "Elfman! Let's storm the place too!"

"Alright!" Gray then made a floor of ice that led straight to the building and they ran as fast as they could.

Erza then turned to Sora. "You said you could make something to help us fight the shades?" Sora nodded. "Then get moving. The faster you do that, the easier this fight will become."

"Got it. Oi, Wakaba! Those Lacrimas still in the same spot?"

The smoke mage looked at him in confusion. "Probably, why?"

Sora then jogged away. "I'll be borrowing them again, just hold Phantom off as long as you can!"

Erza then requipped into her Heaven's Wheel armor. "The rest of us will hold this position. Take down every Shade that comes in range! FOR FAIRY TAIL AND THE MASTER!" Everyone gave a heart-filled cry as she raised a sword to rally them. While this was happening Mira led Lucy away, catching Loke's eye.

Back in the guild basement, Sora had just found the Lacrimas in question and was going over them. "Alright, the way these are now will be useless against the shades. Let's see, they are primarily designed to discharge high amounts of magic energy. So if my hunch is right…" He then closed his eyes and focused on a Lacrima he picked up, being among the ones he already adjusted. After a minute, the Lacrima shifted from white to a light yellow, Sora opening his eyes in satisfaction. "Okay, now to copy this data to another…" He then grabbed hold of another one and focused, causing the second Lacrima to shift in the same way after several moments. "Good, no problems so far. Now to confirm this will work on the bastards."

He then ran out and looked for the closest mage, chancing on Wakaba nearby and on the ground looking weak. Running over to him, he checked his condition. "You okay Wakaba?"

"Urgh, one of those things flew right through me. Left me feeling really weak."

"Okay, try holding onto this." He then moved the Lacrima into his hand, which he weakly grabbed.

A surge of light then pulsed through him for a moment, before fading. Wakaba then sat up with no problem. "What the? What just happened?" He patted his own chest to make sure things were good as Sora smirked.

"I noticed before that these things were basically curses given physical form, so thought the best way to fight them would be a cleansing spell. This Lacrima will now deal with whatever curses they place on you guys, and even slow them down if they get too close, though it won't help against any physical attacks they try. But if you keep it on hand, you'll even the playing field."

Wakaba just blinked at him, looked at the Lacrima, then smirked at Sora. "You did this with a measly explosive Lacrima?!"

"They were already designed to emit energy. I just changed what they emit from explosive to cleansing." He then stood up and helped Wakaba up. "This confirms the test, I gotta go make more. Go back the others up!"

"You got it!" Wakaba ran back into the thick of it while Sora ran back to the basement, glad he made another for quick copying.

3 minutes later, he was running out with an entire bag of Anti-Curse Lacrima over his shoulder and one already in his hand, gauntlets and greaves already prepped. He then ran amongst the mages, giving a Lacrima to everyone he could see, prioritizing those most affected by the curses and getting them back in the fight. For those who needed both hands for their magic, such as Al and Bisca, he fastened the Lacrimas with straps to be held over the shoulder, keeping hands free and curses away.

Eventually, he made his way to Erza, who was holding back dozens of Shades that kept trying to go for her. "Erza, special delivery!" He then tossed her a Lacrima with a strap which she quickly put on, quickly realizing what it could do and looking back at the creatures with a look of ferocity, before going on the offensive against the shades.

As they dissipated, Sora dropped his bag near her and took his own fighting stance, forming a citrine lance in his hands. "Alright, the Lacrimas I just passed out to everyone should give us an edge. They won't stop the Shades from reforming, but it will make it harder for them to take us down."

"Good. Can you determine Natsu's progress on the cannon?" They each sliced a few shades as they got closer.

"Give me a moment." He then looked over to the cannon's barrel and used his telescopic vision to get a better look and caught him running down the barrel. "I don't think he made a lot of progress just smashing the barrel, but he just started running inside it."

"Good. Knowing him, unless something gets in the way, he'll have a way to break it soon."

Sora sliced through a couple more shades as he watched Erza's back. "Yeah, well soon better be in less than 10 minutes. I still haven't recovered enough to be able to do another Palace, and we can't lose you in this fight either."

They continued to fight off the shades for 8 more minutes, and by then the cannon was beginning to look like it was about to fire again. As everyone else began to worry, Sora looked at the cannon. "Well, might as well see if I can double the two." Using telescopic vision, he got a closer look at the cannon getting ready to fire, then tried to tap into the new vision to see through the walls at the same time. With some difficulty and a slight headache, he managed to get a look as Natsu was engaging a mage. "Hey, Erza? Does Phantom have any prominent members with black and white hair? With a Katana as well?"

"That sounds similar to the stories of the Element 4's Totomaru, a mage capable of controlling all forms of fire. Why?"

"… Natsu's up against him…"

"… That would explain why this is taking so long. No matter. No one knows Natsu's flames better than him. He will most assuredly get past him and destroy the weapon!"

"Love the confidence, but we are running out of time here!" Sora spun his lance above his head, then swiped it to the side, creating a slash of light that shot out and destroyed every Shade that hit it.

As the cannon came within seconds of firing, an explosion sounded from the Jupiter cannon and the energy dissipated, pieces of the barrel coming off as it fell apart!

Sora looked at it in relief as the Fairy Tail mages cheered. "Alright, sorry for doubting the guy."

Erza smirked and raised her sword. "The Jupiter Cannon has been destroyed! Now, let's win this battle!" The guild gave another war cry and redoubled their efforts against the Shades, destroying them even faster than before.

After several moments, the mobile guild shifted once more, seeming to fold into and away from itself in varying ways as Shades flew around it. As the mages looked on in confusion, they observed as the guild building took on a new shape.

"What is that?! You have to be kidding me!" Cana exclaimed.

"It's a giant…" Loke looked at the large figure in shock. "A magic giant!"

Sora looked up at it apprehensively, noting that the spikes he shoved into it had made the end result look more intimidating. "You gotta be kidding me… This makes Clay's Gigas look like an ant!"

As the towering giant looked down on them, Jose's voice sounded out again. "Kneel before me, detestable brats… and know your place! Savor the final moments of your lives while filled with despair!"

"The Shades are coming back!" Al warned. As they surged towards them.

"A giant _and_ ghosts! How are we supposed to deal with that!?" Bisca declared, readying her guns.

Cana readied her cards. "We'll just focus on the Shades. I'm sure Natsu will handle the giant for us!"

Wakaba and Macao on the other hand looked worried for a different reason. "B-But…" "Natsu and vehicles…"

At that, the entire guild paled at the thought of what that meant, all releasing sounds of pitiful realization. Erza turned to Sora, who was staring intently at the giant. "Sora, how is he?"

Sora used his eye to zoom in on the room Natsu was in, glad that the guy had done enough damage to put some holes in the room. "Well… about as good as you would expect. The Phantom guy is about to get the drop on him." He then smirked as he saw what happened next. "But it looks like Gray and Elfman decided to show up just now, so he'll be fine."

Sighs of relief echoed out amongst the guild, as they witnessed a frozen object get shot out of the giant and into the sky, disappearing like a star. Sora whistled impressed. "Wow. That Elfman has quite the arm on him. Remind me not to piss him off too much."

As the Fairy Mages continued to fight off the Shades, they began to take notice that the right arm was writing something as it moved. Al and Bisca looked at it in worry as they fired their magic guns. "Writing? No…!" "It can't be…!"

Erza looked at it in worry. "A magic circle. From the design of it… It's Abyss Break, one of the forbidden spells! And at the size of it… Its power will take out _all_ of Magnolia!"

Sora turned to Erza wide-eyed. "He's gonna what now?! Ah, son of a nutcase…!" He then noticed a large wave of shades coming and created a small, round platform with a cone-shaped object attached to the platform on a center pedestal. Sora then grabbed the 2 handles on each side of the smaller end and aimed the larger one at the shades. "Please work, please work, please work!" He then sent some magic into the construct, making the cone turn a clear yellow, and making it shoot out a large beam of light that grew in size as it traveled, vanquishing shades as they were consumed by it, and putting a large smile on Sora's face.

He then swung the cone to the side and destroyed some more that nearly got the jump on Erza, turning her attention to Sora's latest construct. "Does this one have a name as well?"

"At the moment, I'm just calling it Citrine Spotlight. Might try a better one later. You know, when we aren't fighting for our lives or anything." He then turned his Spotlight around at all the other nearby clusters of shades, giving the mages a bit more breathing room as they fought back.

After a few more minutes, Sora saw something that was slightly confusing to him. As the mages looked in surprise, they all saw Lucy walking forth through the battlefield and up towards the cliff. But what confused Sora, was that at the same time, he was faintly seeing Mira. "… Okay… What?"

As everyone who knew tried to stop her, Lucy/Mira held out her arms. " _I'm_ the one you want! Stop attacking our guild this instant!"

After a few seconds, Jose gave his reply. "Begone… Imposter!"

Lucy/Mira looked shocked as Jose laughed at her. "I've known from the very start that Lucy isn't there!" As he spoke, the image of Lucy faded, leaving only Mira standing before them.

As Mira and the other mages looked pissed at how well Jose knew what they were up to, Sora looked at Mira in thought. 'So she was using transformation magic to look like Lucy? What the hell, what else can my eye do?!' He then turned his attention back to the assaulting shades as he grimaced. 'I swear, if this thing starts showing me the future, I may start considering taking it out!'

After a little while, the Giant had nearly finished the outer layer of the circle, when a green light drew Sora's attention over to Mira, seeing a green magic circle underneath her. As everyone watched in shock, Mira fell through and vanished from sight, the circle quickly disappearing. "Deplorable girl, attempting to fool us like that…" Everyone looked to the giant to see it looking at its left hand, seeing Mira stuck in its grasp. "Now you will witness the end of your friends as you are slowly crushed."

Everyone looked at Mira in varying degrees of shock, anger, and fear. Sora, deciding to take a chance, shifted his Spotlight into something of a large crossbow with a glowing purple bolt. Carefully taking aim, he fired at the wrist of the arm holding Mira. It hit with a powerful bang, but left not even a dent in the thing. "Okay, that isn't going to work. I'm of no use trying to help her from here…"

At that moment, a part of the building's wall burst, the smoke clearing away to show a wounded Elfman. Mire looked in fear and called out the name of her brother. "Elfman!"

Behind him, Sora could just make out a man in an orange suit swaying back and forth. Describing them to Erza, she gave him a quick run-down on the man, Sol of the Earth. Needing very little time to decide, seeing as the man was now apparently turning Elfman to stone, Sora took careful aim and fired another bolt.

As Sol watched in glee as Elfman began to turn to stone, he didn't notice in time as Sora's crystal bolt fired at and into him, tearing him away from the ground and down the hall, stopping the spell's momentum. After a few seconds, Sol got up and rushed to the entrance. "What was that! Non, non, who had the gall to strike me when I wasn't looking?" He then spotted Sora, who even from this distance he could tell was grinning like a madman with a mock salute. While he perceived this, he didn't notice how Elfman was beginning to regain his senses at Mira's words and tears. "Non, non, non! That man knows nothing of being a gentleman! And right when we were reaching the finale!"

"Why?"

Elfman's quiet words made Sol turn to look at the man he was now next to. "Oh?"

"I swore I'd never see your tears again!" As Elfman began to talk with more and more determination, a powerful light come off of him, surprising Sora at what he was seeing, and hearing. "So why are you crying now?! Who made you cryyy?!

After a few moments, an image overlapped onto Elfman's and Sora became shocked at the monstrous behemoth that was now in his place, staring down at a now panicking Sol. "Uh, Erza? Has Elfman ever done a full-body takeover?"

Erza slashed at several shades in her Black Wing armor before answering. "Once, but he lost control and something tragic happened. Why?"

"… Uh, no reason." He then watched in stunned silence through a combination of Telescopic and X-ray vision as Beast Elfman completely thrashed Sol, not even letting the bastard go unconscious! He then noticed as he shrank in size after letting the bastard finally pass out and hop onto the arm holding Mira and run to her. Taking precautions, Sora loaded another bolt, larger than the previous, and prepared to fire at Elfman should he be out of control, hoping he wouldn't have to fire.

As he watched, he let out a sigh of relief as Elfman only freed Mira and held her close in a hug. Deciding to get back to helping out, he looked around at the situation and noticed something. "Hey, is it just me, or is the Giant moving slower?"

Erza and some of the others took a look at those words and noticed the same thing. "It would seem that whatever they're doing in there, it's working."

Sora nodded as he brought back his spotlight. "Then let's continue giving them less to worry about!" He then shone his light on the shades again, quickly gaining their apparent ire since they seemed to start gathering around him. "Well what do ya know. Guess my over-sized Night-Light is starting to get their attention."

Erza cut down some of the shades that slipped past his light. "I'll keep them off you as best I can. You continue to provide support to the rest of the guild."

"Sir yes sir!" Sora grinned as he swiveled his Spotlight at every large concentration of shades he could see, while Erza watched his back and kept the shades away from him as best she could.

As their numbers increased, no doubt to Jose's doing, some began to slip through and get some cheap shots in on both Erza and Sora. If not for the Lacrimas that Sora had made, they might have gone down already. After another one got a good hit on him, Sora let out a cry of pain and loosed a flash of light from his gauntlet. "Shit, these things just keep coming! How many of these damn things can that bastard make?!"

Erza had switched back to her Heaven's Wheel armor some time back and was moving her swords around in an orbit, trying to get every shade that came close. "He doesn't bear the title of Wizard Saint for show. It also doesn't help that they are mostly coming for you and me for the damage we've done to their numbers."

"Gee, I'm really feeling the love from these guys!" He then focused a bit of magic into the platform he was on and several spikes and such jutted out, revealing 8 spikes about half a meter long and up at a 45-degree angle. As the spikes glowed the same color as the Spotlight, a sphere of golden light encompassed Sora just as another couple of shades ran at him, being repelled by the field and at the mercy of Erza's swords. "Okay, I have no idea how long this barrier will last, but I am sick of these things landing hits on me! Just focus on taking those things down for now!"

"Alright!" Erza then became more aggressive with her attacks now that she could let Sora be for a while.

Taking a quick breather, Sora wiped some sweat from his brow and took a moment to look at the Giant to see the others progress, and noticed some rain clouds clearing away that he didn't even notice had formed earlier. "Wait, did that Rain Woman just get involved? I hope that means someone managed to beat her." He then looked at the arm casting Abyss Break and noticed it was moving even slower than before. "Wow. Looks like they're nearly there! Alright, then I shouldn't be slacking off either! Alright you bastards! Come see the light at the end of the tunnel!"

After a few more minutes, the shades began to die down a little, and both Sora and Erza took a break. As they caught their breaths, Erza looked to Sora. "Can you tell how the others are doing in the Giant?"

Sora nodded. "Maybe. Give me a minute, haven't really practiced using two vision-types at once very much, but I seem to be figuring it out." Focusing, he managed to not only be successful at combining the two again, but managed to get a lock on some of them. "Alright, looks like after helping Mira, she and Elfman managed to catch up to Gray, who appears to have taken down the 3rd member of the Element 4. As for Natsu…" His eyes widened when he found him. "He is getting his ass handed to him by a guy in green robes and wearing a blindfold!"

Erza's eyes widened in shock at that. "What?! He's fighting Aria on his own?! That fool, Aria is the strongest member of the Element 4!"

Sora thought for a few seconds, before getting an idea. "Say, who would win in a fight? You, or Aria?"

Erza looked at him in confusion. "What are you getting at?"

Sora then dismissed his platform and Spotlight and created a large Ballista, loaded with a long tipped bolt with a pair of rungs sticking out on each side. Grabbing onto one rung and placing a foot on the one behind it, he looked at Erza. "I can get you in there in time to help him, but it will be up to you to take the guy down. Now, can you do it?"

Erza looked at him in surprise, before shifting to a look of determination and hopping on next to him as she shifted back to Black Wing Armor. "Without a doubt."

"Good. Then hold on tight."

Erza then turned to Cana. "Take care of things here. We're going to reinforce the others."

The card mage nodded in response. "Alright, these Lacrimas Sora gave us have done a good job of keeping us going. You guys go take care of things up there."

After they each took a firm grip, Sora triggered the ballista and launched them with as much power as he could. Watching carefully to make sure they weren't deviating from their destination, Sora created a spike of amethyst in his hand aimed at the giant in front of them. "When we burst through, head straight ahead!" Seeing Erza nod to confirm she heard him, he waited until the last moment to launch the spike, creating a hole that opened up into a hall that led straight to the room Natsu was fighting in.

* * *

A/N And break time. This chapter was getting long, so I decided to cut off the rest and save it for next time. Hope you all enjoyed what you saw so far, and that nothing was too unreasonable for what he can do. So, please review this story and let me know what you think.


	6. Ending the Conflict

A/N: Hello again everyone. Sorry for the delay, meant to get this out last week but stuff kept happening, and when I first tried to post this, something was happening that I couldn't understand. Anyway, if you all can read this, than I finally managed to get this posted. Hope you all enjoy the second part of the battle with Phantom Lord.

Review responses

 **HurtadoRojas** : Glad to see your looking forward to my updates. Have another!

 **ahurtrojo** : Good to hear you liked the last one. Hope you like this one too!

 **Adrian** : Not a bad idea for an antagonist, though it is a bit like Ultron like you said. Still, I do like the idea so I may toy around with the idea into something I can use later on. Maybe something created by the original Crystal Makers instead of Sora himself. Let me know if you have any other thoughts, because you really do have some fun ideas!

 **Taniano 3000** : Yeah, sorry. Something was going on to keep the chapter from actually being seen. Hopefully you're seeing this soon.

 **Guest** : Finally! The only other pairing ideas I've been getting was about OCxErza, so you are the first to suggest Mira. I do have a few fun ideas I might be able to do if I follow that route, so I will take your idea under consideration. Other than that, glad you'd be willing to read more of my story anyway!

* * *

As the bolt they rode in on shot through the hole, Sora let go and landed in a roll before it hit something and Erza flew ahead, racing to support Natsu. As he stopped rolling, Sora took a second before getting himself up. "Urgh, damn. I need to adjust a little more before I do some of this crazy stuff. How many things have I tested today?" He held a hand to his head trying to count, before shaking it away. "Ah, no matter. I need to focus on the present." He then shuffled his feet to see if he could catch the matchup between Natsu, Aria, and Erza without needing to use his eye powers.

As he walked into the room, he made it in time to see Erza knocking out Aria with her blades and Heaven's Wheel armor, numerous cuts across his form and Happy and Natsu watching with fearful looks.

"She beat him in one move!" "Erza really _is_ dangerous!"

Erza didn't even turn around as she addressed the downed Aria. "Our master will never be done in by the likes of you." She then turned to him with a look of disdain. "Strike him from your list of triumphs this instant."

"S-So sad…" Aria then passed out completely after his last muttered words.

Silence reigned for a few seconds, before Sora decided to speak up as he leaned against the doorway. "Well, I sure wish I saw how that went down."

Natsu, Happy, and Erza then turned to where he was and noticed how tired he was, and rushed to him. Natsu was the first to reach his side. "Sora! What are you doing here?!"

Natsu helped him lay against the side of the doorway as he smirked. "How do you think Erza got on this thing? She may be strong, but she isn't fast enough to get onto this thing and find you before that guy did you in."

"Hey, I was gonna beat him just fine!"

"Heh, not how it looked to me with the way he was almost literally wiping the floor with you, without taking a single injury himself."

Before Natsu could argue back, Erza hit him in the back of the head. "Natsu, enough. Can't you see how exhausted he is?" She then knelt next to him and shifted to her standard armor as Natsu recovered from the hit. "Are you alright? You've been using a lot of complex magic you haven't attempted before in the last hour alone."

Sora nodded to her. "I'll be fine. Just need to rest for a bit."

At that moment, the structure began to shift and shake, causing Natsu and Happy to work to maintain their balance as Erza looked around. Sora however, didn't even try and let himself fall on his side as the place shook for a few seconds, swearing a little before everything settled.

As everything calmed down, Happy looked about in worry. "What was that?"

Erza looked around herself, before helping Sora to get back to a sitting position. "Sora. Is it…?"

Sora nodded to her and turned towards where they came in from, using his eye to confirm the outside situation. Once he did, he smirked. "Yeah, it's over! The giant stopped, and the Abyss Break is no more!" That got a smile out of the others, as they learned that they were somehow able to stop the Phantom Giant from tearing apart Magnolia.

Natsu cheered as he punched his palm. "Alright! Now all that's left to do is kick Jose and Gajeel's ass, and we win this!"

Sora chuckled at his enthusiasm as Happy chastised him. "Natsu! What did I say!? You don't have anywhere near enough power to take on Jose! At least leave him to Erza!"

At that moment, Jose's voice came through once more. "Members of Fairy Tail! Listen closely to this!"

"What…?" Natsu looked up confused as Happy and Erza braced themselves for what sort of plan the guild master had this time.

Sora banged his head against the wall he was sitting against. "Great, what is this guy up to now?"

His question was answered as they all heard a loud, painful scream come through, coming from an all too familiar voice, making Natsu freeze at the realization of who was screaming. "We have captured Lucy Heartfilia. That's right. Our first goal has been achieved. That leaves us with our one other goal… Destroying all of you pathetic brats!"

As Erza and Sora looked pissed at what he was doing, Natsu looked downright furious! "Bastard…!"

Sora started to get up, but he was too out of it and fell back down, Erza quickly coming to help him. "Take it easy, you've already done enough for now."

"No… Not until I identify where this bastard is and where they've got Lucy…" He then used his eye once again and looked around everywhere he could, pushing through the headache threatening to split his skull. He managed to locate Lucy and Gajeel, who was keeping her hostage, and Jose, who had apparently left his control room and was making his way through the giant, before releasing the ability and leaning his head against the wall in relief. "Okay… Okay I got them…" He then turned to Natsu. "Lucy is with the guy with so many piercings, he could only be Black Steel Gajeel."

Natsu nodded at the description. "Sounds like the bastard. What about Jose?"

"He's started moving around. Not sure where he's heading, but it's away from Lucy. This is your best chance to go after her."

Natsu looked at him unsure, with Happy looking worried. "What about you?"

Erza cut in before any more could be said. "I'll keep an eye on him. You focus on using every ounce of strength within you. And I mean all of it."

Natsu looked at her confused as she kept speaking. "You still have dormant strength within you… Believe in yourself. Be steadfast, and wake it. Now is the time… Protect Lucy. Protect our guild." As she spoke, Natsu's face became more and more determined, needing only one more prompt from Erza to set himself off. "Go, Natsu! You're meant to surpass me!"

Natsu was silent, as the temperature around him began to quickly rise, until he burst into flames so bright, Sora had to shield his eyes and face from the intensity of the blaze. As Natsu roared, Sora was able to make out the shape of a dragon within his flames.

Natsu then began to stalk over in the direction his nose knew Lucy and Gajeel to be, only to be stopped by Sora's voice. "Oi, hold up." Turning around, he noticed something land near his feet. Looking down, he saw a red top beginning to spin, before looking back at a smirking Sora. "Want a top-off?"

The top then spun rapidly, creating a large surge of fire, which was quickly gobbled up by the blazing Salamander. Once it was all consumed and the top disappeared, Natsu wiped his mouth with his arm. "Thanks for the meal. Now get some rest." He then ran off towards Lucy, knocking down anything in his way as Happy quickly followed behind.

Sora looked to Erza impressed. "Not bad. You really know how to motivate that guy. You really think he can surpass you of all people?"

Erza nodded. "Of course. He may be headstrong, but you surely felt the power that was surging from him. Not to mention you just gave him a recharge."

That got a small chuckle out of the mage. "Good point. Guess we just need to bet on his ability to destroy everything he gets his hands on to win the day." He laid his head back against the wall once more, wincing from discomfort. "Owowow… damn this headache…"

Erza frowned at that as she knelt next to him. "How bad is it?"

He gave her a strained smile in response. "Nothing I haven't pushed through before, but I definitely don't want to try anything while I'm like this. Maker magic needs focus to work, and it's hard to focus when you got a skull-cracking headache."

Erza gave him a faint smile at hearing he'd be okay. "You fool…"

"Says the one who tried to tank a cannon blast that could wipe out a city." They each chuckled a little at that.

"Erza!" "Sora!"

They both turned their heads to see Mira, Gray, and Elfman had run into the room, the latter looking at the damage that had been done. "This place has been trashed too."

Erza stood up and looked at them in light surprise. "Everyone…"

Sora held up a hand weakly as he smiled. "Yo. What took you guys so long?"

"When did you both get in here?!" Gray asked.

Mira ran over and kneeled beside Sora. "I thought you guys were helping protect the guild! Why did you come here after all the magic you've already used today?!"

Sora smirked at her. "Well, Erza needed an express train here to save Natsu's hide. And unfortunately, there weren't any trains operating in the area. So I obviously had to hurl us both here on a self-made ballista bolt. Nothing too unreasonable."

Mira smacked him lightly as she frowned at him. "Don't joke around like that right now! Do you have any idea the kinds of enemies that could have found you?!"

Sora blinked at her, then pointed at the beaten Aria. "You mean like that guy?"

They all looked, and Elfman was the first to express his shock. "O-Oi! Isn't that…!?"

"Aria?!" Mira looked back at Sora in shock, only to see him smiling and pointing at Erza.

Everyone looked at Erza in shock, as she simply stood completely relaxed. "What?"

Before anyone could comment on it, Sora widened his eyes in realization. "Uh, hey guys?"

They all looked at him as Gray spoke. "What's up?"

"Uh, well, everyone who hopped aboard this thing, with the exception of Natsu who is off getting Lucy, is now in this room, right?" They all nodded, feeling confused, as Sora gulped out of fear. "Well, Jose left his control room just a little while ago, and I can only think of one place he might go…"

They all realized what he was suggesting, just before they all felt an incredibly powerful, and dangerously dark aura.

"What the…?" Gray said, completely motionless.

Elfman looked like a deer in headlights, not uttering a word as Mira looked around in fear. "What is this?!"

"I sense death!" Erza looked ahead in worry.

Sora couldn't even move from his position, and simply uttered a few quiet words. "Well… This is going to be a bitch."

"What is this feeling!?" Gray exclaimed, looking around as a dark aura permeated around the room.

Elfman was shaking slightly as he looked around. "It's giving me chills, despite my manliness!"

"The air is filled with evil energy!" Mira said, as she backed towards the wall Sora was sitting against.

"Yeah, I've never felt anything like this! This has got to be HIM!"

A gentle clapping was then heard in the room, and they all looked to see Jose with a dark aura wrapped around him as he looked at them smugly. "That was truly impressive, my Fairy Tail wizards. To be honest, I never imagined you would entertain me _this_ much. To think that you would destroy the Jupiter, take down the Element 4, and bring my magic giant to its knees…"

"Master Jose!" Erza exclaimed.

"He's…" "Phantom's master!?" Elfman and Gray looked at him in shock and fear.

Sora just deadpanned at them. "No, he's their delivery boy. What does he look like?!"

Jose looked at Sora neutrally. "I'm surprised you can even make jokes in front of me, but I guess you really are either that stupid, or that brave. Probably both."

Sora smirked weakly at him. "If I couldn't make light of the situation, I might just pass out right here."

"So you're simply coping then? Hmm, at least you know your betters. Now then…" He gestured to them with open arms. "You were kind enough to entertain me, so I really must return the favor."

Gray and Elfman then jumped in front of the rest of them. "Elfman!" "Yeah!"

"Return it in full…" Jose said darkly, as he raised a hand that was coated in dark energy.

"Ice Make…" "Beast Arm…" Gray and Elfman began to charge their magic, as Erza looked at them in fear.

"Wait! Don't be so hasty!"

But her shouts went unanswered as the duo attacked Jose. "Saucer!" "Iron Bull!"

Jose didn't even have the gall to look worried, as he simply raised his arm. "How absurd!" He then unleashed a swarm of ghastly spirits, which tore apart both the attacks and the casters, leaving them weak as they were tossed to the side of the room.

"Elfman!" "Gray!" Mira and Sora looked at where they fell in worry, before looking back at Jose in anger.

Erza however looked the angriest, as she glared straight at Jose, who waved his arm and created an explosion, knocking Gray and Elfman even further away, and throwing Mira and Sora away as well, rendering them both unconscious as Erza began her counter attack.

* * *

When Sora came to, it was to a massive quake that caused some rubble to land next to his head. When he opened his eyes and looked around the trashed room of the Phantom headquarters, he saw a ragged Erza facing a rather calm Jose, who had some scratches of his own.

As rubble continued to land around them, Jose didn't even question the source. "What an unruly dragon."

Erza just stood across from him in her Black Wing armor, sword at the ready and panting heavily. "It looks like you didn't count on Natsu's fighting abilities." She then repositioned her sword as she faced him. "Little did you know he's at least as powerful as I am, if not more!"

"Hmph. Don't be so modest, Titania Erza. Your magic is spectacular indeed. You're actually the first wizard to last this long against me in a fight." Sora took a quick look around to confirm the status of the others, seeing the other three unconscious, but otherwise alive. "It is truly a wonderful match. If it weren't for the boy and his crystals, you would have taken more of a hit from the Jupiter, and this matchup would be much less exciting."

Sora barely held himself back from giving a prideful comment, but didn't want to attract attention to himself while he was still helpless.

"I cannot stand the fact that there are such powerful wizards like you in Makarov's guild."

At those words, Sora simply watched and listened to Jose as he then flicked his finger, sending out a burst of magic that sent Erza flying back and creating a small crater in the back wall. "Do you know why I didn't finish Makarov off?" Jose then charged a small ball of Shade magic on the tips of each of his fingers, before launching them one by one at Erza.

From the resulting cloud of dust, Erza flew up and around. "Despair!" Jose answered, as he fired more magic that Erza worked to avoid, strafing and dodging as best she could. "I did it to instill despair. How will he feel when he wakes and sees that his beloved guild and his dear comrades have been wiped out? He'll be grief-stricken, I'm sure…"

Erza glared at him in hate as he spoke, while Sora look angry himself, wishing he could stand up and perform a repeat of what Lucy did to him earlier. Jose ignored the look he was aware of and continued. "Once I've given him despair and sorrow, _then_ I will destroy him. It will not be a pleasant death. He will suffer, suffer, and suffer even more as he withers and dies!"

Erza then charged straight at the bastard, swinging her sword. "You wretch!"

Jose suddenly vanished before her attack connected, and reappeared behind her as she landed. "Phantom Lord was _always_ the top guild. It had the greatest magic in the kingdom, the greatest personnel, the most money…" He then fixed a glare in her direction. "But Fairy Tail has suddenly grown much stronger in recent years. Erza, Laxus, Mystogan… Those names even reached our town, and stories about the Salamander spread throughout the land. At some point, Phantom Lord and Fairy Tail became the two guilds that represent this kingdom. Heh. I can't stand it." His eyes narrowed dangerously at those last words, before widening maniacally. "Your guild was always feeble as hell!"

"Silence!" Erza charged him once more, putting even more power and speed into her attack, but Jose was still too fast and he evaded her attacks and stopped atop some rubble. Erza then aimed her sword at him in anger. "Are you saying your pathetic jealousy is what triggered this war?!"

"Jealousy? Nothing of the sort." Jose spoke in dark amusement. "We only want to make it clear who's dominant and who isn't."

"All of this, for such a stupid reason?!" She then leaped at him once more, taking more swings than Sora could see and count at the monster who attacked her guild, her family!

After a while of dodging, Jose unleashed his magic on her once more, this time his shades knocking her sword away and coiling around her, shocking and completely restricting her! As Erza cried out from the pain, Jose talked some more. "I've never been fond of your guild, but it was something trivial that triggered this war… A job request, to take the daughter of the Heartfilia Concern back home."

He followed that up with another shock. "One of this kingdom's richest socialites, a member of Fairy Tail? Just how large must you become before you're satisfied?!" He then shocked Erza some more. "With unfettered access to the Heartfilia fortune, you would undoubtedly grow more powerful than us! That is the one thing we cannot allow!" Another shock, another cry of pain.

Sora just looked at the bastard bearing the title of Wizard Saint in outrage. 'Is he serious? THAT'S why he began all this?! IS HE A COMPLETE IDIOT?!'

Jose then looked at her in satisfaction, before becoming confused as she smirked at him. "The very fact you're making a fuss over who's superior or not is deplorable. But more than anything, I'm appalled at how poor your information gathering is."

"Do tell."

"Lucy came to us as a runaway! She can't touch her family's money!" Jose looked at her in surprise, not having expected that. "She rents a place for 70,000 a month, works for a living just like we do, fights alongside us, laughs with us, cries with us… She's a wizard in our guild, like any one of us!"

She then looked at him in fury. " _She_ triggered the war, you say?! The daughter of the Heartfilia family, you say?! Just as flowers can't choose where to bloom… Children can't choose their parents!" She then managed to pry her arms free and above her head as she glared down at the insane mage. "What would _you_ know about Lucy and the tears she's shed?!"

Jose looked at her with a frown, before a crazed smile danced across his face as he reinforced his magic. "I'll find out soon enough!" Erza and Sora looked at him in shock as he kept talking. "Do you think I'm going to hand the girl over to her father just like that? I'm going to keep her like a pet until I've bled him dry. I will have _all_ of the Heartfilia fortune!"

"Curse you!" Erza shouted and yelled as she fought to break free of the magic holding her, but Jose wouldn't have that.

"I wouldn't struggle if I were you. You'll only make things worse." Two large skeletal shades then formed behind him and floated around, beginning to suck the life out of Erza! "Now then! Let's get this cruel show underway! I'm going to let the Fairy Tail riffraff get a good look at you, my proud Titania. The rest of the scum will surely surrender once they see you in your pitiable state!"

"Y-You're loathsome to the core!"

"And you're about to become a loathsome spectacle."

"And you're about to receive a loathsome hit."

"Huh?" Jose actually froze for a minute as the new voice cut in, then widened his eyes to their limits as he felt a very sharp and slightly familiar pain in his lower region, causing him to let go of the magic he had leashed on Erza and for him to curl up on reflex, leaving the mage to collapse on the ground. Jose and Erza then looked to the one who had dealt the damage, and saw Sora with a shadow over his eyes. "Y-You bastard…!"

"You're one to talk, Lord of the assholes." A faint trail of multi-colored energy then began to leak out from where his left eye was, and a similar glow was occurring around his heart beneath his shirt. "After all the things you've done… After all the things you decided for yourself…" The shadow lifted from his face as his eyes were wide open with rage, crystal eye exposed and releasing even more energy in a wild fashion. "Unforgivable! Out of all the kinds of people I can't stand, I ABSOLUTELY HATE SCUM LIKE YOU THE MOST!" A surge of magic energy then consumed him in a pillar of light, the force of which had the weakened Erza and the recovering Jose blown back a bit.

When the light and the winds died down, Jose got up and Erza looked back weakly, both of them unprepared for what they saw before them. Where Sora once stood, there was now a figure in full citrine armor, covering every inch of their form and radiating a soft light. As they watched, a multicolored glow lit up over where their heart would be, and a stream of similarly colored light drifted out and to the side of where their left eye ought to be.

They then raised their arm and turned their head to look at it, turning it around and flexing their fingers, before closing it into a fist and looking right at Jose, eye seemingly narrowing as they spoke in an echoed voice. "You will pay for all you've done. You and your sins will be purged from this world."

Jose glared at Sora in fury. "Cute trick boy. But it will take more than some fancy armor to stand against the likes of me!" Jose then fired a surge of several dozen shades that went straight at him. Sora simply stood there unmoving, not even looking at the dark magic sent at him. When they got within a foot of him, golden magic circles popped into existence and disintegrated the attacks before they could even touch him.

Jose could only look in shock, as Sora then crack his neck one way, then the other, before slowly walking over to the Wizard Saint. "I'll admit I don't really know how I'm doing this right now. But I do know that this armor is made from my primary gem-type, which makes me incredibly adept at light magic. As I am now, you likely don't stand a chance."

Jose looked at him in anger, as he released more powerful magic at Sora, who dodged the attacks with ease and grace, before charging straight at Jose with a shining fist. Jose blocked the attack with a shield of shades, still being pushed back quite a way as it shattered, before backing off and releasing even more shades to overwhelm and flank him. Sora simple held his arms out to the side, fingers spread and a small sphere of light at each tip, before firing a volley of light magic at each shade, each one taking only a single shot to be destroyed. He then closed one of his hands into a fist and fired a blast of magic at Jose, who managed to make it into a glancing blow as he returned fire.

Erza meanwhile could only sit back and watch the back and forth that went on between the cruel Saint and the berserk crystal maker. "What sort of power is this? Just what kind of ability does he have within himself?"

After several more minutes of this back and forth, Jose began to get frustrated. 'How is this brat keeping up?! The fight with Erza must have taken more out of me than I thought. I should have destroyed him by now!' Jose's eyes turned black as he then created more shades than Erza could count as they flowed together, creating several sphere forms with numerous arms and hands of their own, each with a pair of glowing red eyes.

"I used a larger version of these to destroy the Fairy Guild hall just moments ago! Try and hold yourself together after taking a beating from these!" Jose laughed maniacally as the formations of shades pulled back several arms each, ready to throw them right at Sora.

Sora just looked at them, eye narrowed even more at the information of the guild, as the energy trail from his eye grew and moved more frantically. "Solar… Flare…" A bright light, unlike any that Erza has witnessed him performing up until now, shone out from his entire body, making every part of the room feel brighter than the very sun! As Erza covered her eyes, trying to preserve her vision, Jose was caught by the full blast and was nearly blinded as he held his hands over his eyes from the pain, the light scorching away every speck of his shades.

Meanwhile, the Fairy Tail mages by the now ruined Guild Hall tried to fight off the massive shade mass, before they noticed the light shining out from the Giant and held a hand over their eyes as they tried to see what was happening, while the Shade conglomerate that had destroyed their hall and was moving onto them shrieked and withered away as the light hit it as well.

"What… What is this light?!" "What's happening?!" "It's way too freaking bright!"

As the light died down, Erza deemed it safe enough to look and saw Sora standing right where he was, the energy trail from his eye having calmed as smoke drifted from the entirety of the room, Jose especially so. As Jose lowered his arms, he looked at what he believed to be Sora from the blurriness and spots that now dominates his vision through red eyes.

Sora meanwhile, simply raised his arm before him, aimed right at Jose. Immediately after, a golden magic circle formed in front of it, creating a sphere of light magic that grew in size. As it began to get bigger than Sora, he raised his arm and it continued to grow even more, beginning to look like a miniature Sun that was hanging above his head.

"This is the end of this conflict. Repent for your sins, Jose of Phantom Lord." Jose flinched slightly at the sound of his name and the anger he could hear in the voice that uttered it. "Citrine… NOVA!"

As he began to move his arm down to throw the magic at the hateful man, the magic winked out of existence and the armor around Sora shattered into light. As the exhaustion of trying to use so much magic in a day caught up to him, and whatever he had triggered ended its effects, he maintained consciousness long enough for a few thoughts. '… No… Just a… little… longer…' Then all went black as he collapsed against the ground.

Erza looked at his form in shock at what he had accomplished, and worry at how vulnerable he now was. All was silent for several minutes, until a dark laughter ran out through the room, prompting Erza to turn towards a crazed Jose. "Haha… Hahaha… HAHAHAHAHAAAAA! That impudent little brat. This will teach him to challenge his betters." Jose strolled towards the collapsed mage one step at a time as his blurry vision slowly recovered. After a few seconds, he stood above Sora with a hand shrouded in dark magic. "Now then. Time to show him what it means to challenge TRUE strength!"

He then swung his arm down, intending to kill him, when an attack threw him back and into a pillar that had miraculously survived the destruction that raged about the structure. Getting up, Jose glared at what he believed to be Erza, who was standing protectively above Sora with a look of fury and determination on her face and a blade in each hand. "Don't you dare… harm one more… OF MY FRIENDS!"

Jose looked at her in anger, and generated several large shades beside and behind him, ready to tear Erza apart, when a soft light shone down from above, dispelling the shades and repairing the damage done to Erza, her armor, and even healing some of the wounds inflicted on the others around the room.

Jose looked away from her and looked up at the hole in the ceiling, observing the arrival of Fairy Tail's guild master, Makarov, as he drifted down with eyes closed. As he entered the room, Jose grinned maliciously as Erza turned to her master, a look of surprise and hope on her face. As he finally landed on a pile of rubble, a shadow was cast over his eyes. "Much blood has been shed… Children's blood… Children have suffered and shed tears because of their uncouth parents… On _both_ sides. But it has gone far enough." He then opened his eyes and fixed an angry look at Jose. "This must be ended!"

Erza wiped tears from her eye before looking back at her recovered master with a genuine smile on her face. "Master…!"

Makarov and Jose just stared each other down for a few moments, before Jose once again shifted his eyes to black, despite the blurriness that still somewhat obscured his vision and began to release his magic energy, causing some of the smaller pieces of rubble to float up from the intensity. "You wish for a catastrophe then?"

Veins in Makarov's head pulsed, before his fingertip was enveloped in light, then bringing it up in front of him as his own magic energy began to leak out. Drawing his hand back, he delivered his answer. "If it's for my guild's sake, then yes…!"

The two of them continued their standoff for several moments, neither making a move, and Erza looking nervously at the intensity of the magic being released. As the standoff continued, the warmth of the light began to make some of the others stir into consciousness.

Gray was the first, as he tried to push himself up on his arms. "What is this magic?! It's warm and feels familiar…" He then looked at Makarov in shock at seeing him in front of him, despite the shape he was in mere hours ago.

Jose then unleashed a group of Shades at the Fairy Tail master, who blocked the attacks with a series of magic circles that acted as barriers, protecting him and the others. He then hopped down to the barriers and barked an order to his children. "Everyone get away from here!"

Gray and Elfman then managed to get to their feet and looked at Makarov in shock and confusion.

"Master!" "What are you doing here?!"

Erza turned to them as she threw the still unconscious Sora over her shoulder. "Do as he says!" She then leaped towards them as the fight intensified, quickly getting to them and Mira, who was still on her knees. "Let's go!"

"B-But…!" Gray tried to argue, not wanting to leave the Master alone again.

Elfman knelt beside Mira as she tried to move. "Nee-chan, can you stand?!"

Jose sneered at Makarov. "Now that you're here, I have no need for these small fry. However, I _will_ put an end to them after I'm through with you. Even if your brats have given me a run for my money, I still have more than enough power to deal with the likes of you!"

Erza looked Gray dead in the eye as she convinced him. "We'll only hinder our master if we stay here!" She then turned to look at Makarov with confidence. "Let's leave everything to him!" She then ran after Elfman and Mira, who had begun walking out through a hole in the wall. Gray looked back at the Saint's battle, before begrudgingly running after the others.

As they reached the edge of the Giant, Gray created a massive slide for them to go down as explosions rocked throughout the structure, giving them a strong idea of the kind of battle being waged. As they all made it down against a cliffside and made sure Sora was okay, they turned to watch the outcome of the battle. Soon, a powerful light shone from the sky, blinding many and vaporizing the remaining shades.

Erza then stepped up to the edge, now in her normal armor, as she identified the magic being cast. "It's Fairy Law."

"Fairy Law?" Gray looked at her confused, not having heard of it before.

Erza watched the light with a gentle smile. "It vanquishes darkness with sacred light. It only destroys what the castor acknowledges as an enemy. It's an ultimate spell, considered one of the most legendary to exist."

After a few more minutes, the light died down, and they heard a noise of complaint behind them. "Urgh, whoever turned off the sun, thank you."

Looking behind them, they saw Sora with a hand against his head where they left him on the ground, Mira and Elfman quickly moving to his side. "Sora!" "Are you alright?!"

"Urgh, not so loud. I have the mother of all headaches and my entire body feels sore for some reason. Is this what they say hangovers feel like? Because if so, I am NEVER touching a drop of alcohol just so I can avoid this feeling as much as possible."

Gray let out a laugh at that. "If he's making comments like that, he must be alright."

"Yeah, yeah. Just show me where the building that got dropped on me went." He then laid out his arm as he opened an eye at the others. "So… did we win?"

Cheers could then be heard from nearby, as the members of Fairy Tail celebrated the end of the battle. Erza looked at him with a proud smile. "It would seem so…"

Sora closed his eye again. "Oh, great, yay. Great work guys."

"And you as well." When a hand came down softly on his head, he opened his eye again to see Erza with a smile of kindness and gratitude on her face as the light of the setting sun shone on them. "Things could have been much worse without you here. Thank you, Sora, for all you've done today."

Sora closed his eye with a smile. "No problem, Erza. I'd do anything for people who I consider my friends. Now then, hope you guys don't mind, but I need some serious rest now."

Mira patted his shoulder with a smile as Elfman smirked at the guy. "Nice work out there today! You really are one hell of a man!"

"And a man who is barely… *yawn* holding onto his waking mind. Wake me… if you need me. Night guys…" And with that, he promptly fell asleep, glad that the hellish day has ended and sleeping through Makarov's speech to the guild.

A while later, Sora felt the irritating sensation of someone trying to shake him awake, then opened his eyes in irritation. "Come on, a weary fighter can't take a damn nap?" He then noticed the appearance of the ones currently near him. "Hm? Unless my brain is so tired I'm hallucinating, is that you Levy?"

Levy, still sporting a few injuries and with Jet and Droy behind her, all gave him grateful smiles. "Yeah, it's me. Sorry to wake you, but there are a couple things we needed you to know as soon as possible."

Sora let out a tired sigh. "Alright, shoot. What's up?"

"Well first, we wanted to say thank you for not only getting us down from the tree and healing us, but for helping our guild fight back against Phantom Lord."

"Seriously. We heard from everyone else about all that you did."

"Not only did you manage to help Erza stop the Jupiter cannon, but you gave everyone an edge against the shades Jose sent against them and took out a large number yourself!"

"Bottom line, we were both impressed and grateful for all you've done today."

Sora blinked at their words, before giving them a smile. "Thanks guys, don't mention it. I'd have to be heartless not to do such a thing." He then thought about his personal situation for a moment, before chuckling a little. "Scratch that. I probably wouldn't even need a heart to want to do all that." Ignoring the confused looks of the mages that aren't aware of his heart, he looked back at them. "So, what was the other thing you needed to tell me?"

At that, they started to look nervous, as Levy tried to figure out what to say. "Uh, well, the thing is…"

"Run!" "Aye sir!"

The panicked calls of Natsu and Happy put a worried look on Sora's face, and he rotated his head to see the two of them being suspended by magic, and a small army of robed individuals with staffs surrounding the Fairy Tail guild. Mira looked at the duo in amusement. "Quit it Natsu. You know there's no escape from the Rune Knights."

She then turned her attention to the wailing Makarov that Erza was trying to calm. "Master! Pull yourself together!"

"Oh my…"

Sora blinked as he comprehended what he saw, before turning his attention back to Team Shadow Gear. "The Rune Knights? As in the Magic Council's Law Enforcement? The people who show just about no mercy to criminals?"

The trio only looked between each other nervously, before Levy looked back down at him. "Yeah… They're here about the incident with Phantom, and are taking everyone's testimonies. We thought you should know before you woke up under guard or anything…"

Sora blinked at that, before the worry of the Rune Knights learning EVERYTHING about him right then and there popped into his head. He then turned his head to Jet. "Hey, I hear you use Speed Magic?" Jet nodded, not sure what he was asking. "So if I were to ask you to, oh, I don't know… Get me the hell out of here and away from them… Could you pull it off?"

Jet crossed his arms in front of him in an X. "Forget it, there is no way I'm about to try and outrun Rune Knights when they already have us surrounded. Especially not with my injuries."

Sora closed his eyes as tears poured out. "Yeah, I thought that might be the case. Oh, maaaan… This is going to suck so much…!" The rest of Shadow Gear chuckled nervously at that as the Knights began to escort people out to begin questioning, some of them preparing a stretcher for Sora already, much to his chagrin.

* * *

A/N: There we go. The battle is over, and the Rune knights begin to clear things up. Hope you all enjoyed Sora's "berserk mode". Had a bit of fun with that, though don't expect to see it too often. I don't even really have an official name for that yet to be honest. Anyway, please let me know what you all think and please leave a fav, follow, or review. Every bit helps me improve this story. See you all later.


	7. Aftermath

Hello everyone. Hope I didn't keep you waiting too long. Some stuff kept happening at home, including blackouts from the way the weather was. Anyway, hope you all enjoy what I have this time. Also, there was apparently some issues involved when I posted the last chapter, so no one was able to read that for some reason until a few hours had passed. If anyone hasn't seen it yet, I recommend going back to see what you might have missed.

Review responses

 **Pokeheroaadyn** : Glad you share my sentiment. The armor is one of my favorite things, but it's way too early to give him something like that all the time. The earliest I'll let him use that at will be around the GMG arc. Still, happy to hear you liked it, and hope you continue to enjoy what I write.

 **Taniano 3000** : Glad you liked it, and I hope not to disappoint when I get to there.

* * *

After a week of painful interrogations and Sora having to explain his role in all this as a legally non-guild mage, they were let go with the promise that their punishment would be doled out later. Now, everyone was busy at work rebuilding the guild hall, even grander than before.

With a roar, Natsu lifted up a large pile of lumber, intending to carry it all the way to where it was needed, only for the pile to collapse on top of him and leave him trapped. Happy and Mira, the latter of which carrying a tray of drinks, looked at him as he got trapped. Gray then walked by with a single piece of lumber. "That's what you get for trying to carry so much, moron."

"What'd you call me?!" Natsu's anger allowed him to launch all of the lumber on him away.

At that moment, the two of them had braced their foreheads against each other, Gray dropping his lumber in the process. "You wanna fight?!"

"Quit carrying them like a wimp!"

As the two glared at and argued with each other, Sora simply did some writing with the sheets in front of him, glancing at the two with an almost bored look. "Man, those two really never stop arguing do they? If they don't stop soon…"

"That's enough!" A large piece of lumber then swung down, treating their heads as nails and plunging them both into the ground. Erza then lifted the lumber back onto her shoulder while dressed as a construction worker. "Work your bodies, not your mouths! We need to rebuild Fairy Tail as quickly as possible!"

The two of them simply wore dazed expressions as a lump formed on the top of their heads with smoke coming off of them. "Aye…"

Sora shook his head with a smile as he looked back down. "There it is. They should really have figured out a system for getting into fights and avoiding Erza at this point if they plan to keep arguing like that." Sora did some more work on his sheets and tuned a few things out, but stopped long enough to catch a few words that held his attention from Macao and Wakaba.

"But y'know…" "Isn't it a little _too_ big?"

Mira then walked up to them holding a piece of paper. "We decided to remodel it while we're at it! This is a concept sketch of the final version!" She then held it up for them to see. Sora inwardly smirked, curious what the reactions would be and watched with baited breath as the two of them were joined by Natsu and Gray, who had just dug themselves out of the ground.

Macao looked at it negatively. "Wow…"

Wakaba tried to look at it positively. "That's… Something else…"

Natsu and Gray just looked at it confused. "I-I don't really understand it…"

Gray leaned in trying to make sense of it. "Man, this sketch sucks. What idiot drew this junk?"

Mira kept up a sunny smile on her face, before turning and hiding her face behind her hands as she cried. Gray then looked at her in a panic as he tried to recover. "O-Oh, it was you, Mira?!"

The other three just deadpanned at him and spoke in synchronicity. "You made her cry again."

"That's Gray for you." Happy stated while sitting on the table Sora as working at, the entire debacle getting him to laugh a bit.

As he calmed his laughing fit, Sora then turned to the crying model. "Hey, Mira, it's okay. Your drawing isn't that bad."

Mira sniffed a little, before turning to him with a few tears still in her eyes. "R-R-Really?"

"Of course not. Like you said, it was a concept sketch. It doesn't matter how the quality is anyway, so don't worry about it."

Mira then wiped away the tears that were left and looked at him gratefully. "Thanks Sora. I guess it's a good thing then that we have you working on the final product."

They all looked at Sora in surprise, including Happy, as they made their way over to the table he was working at. Macao looked about the sheets, trying to make sense of the lines and numbers across the pages. "Wait, you're the one designing the guild hall? I thought you were a crystal shaper?"

Sora kept making adjustments to the numbers as he spoke, while also fiddling with a crystal abacus as me made calculations. "Well yeah, but before you shape something, you need to make sure you know what you're making and that you have the supplies for it. Sure, I can probably do all this with crystals without even really thinking about it, but I still do it out of habit when making something new. It wasn't as easy for me back when I started, and since no one else at the guild has any practice with stuff like this I figured I'd give this a shot. Makarov and Mira talked with me until we got to a general layout they were happy with, and I made sure the dimensions of the structure would be sized properly to hold what they were asking for."

Gray looked about the papers curiously. "Oh yeah? What kind of changes are being made?"

"Well, we've got an outdoor café, a stage in the main hall for performances, a pool behind the bar, the basement getting a large game room, and a few other things that are mostly cosmetic and look nice and such."

As Sora calmly talked about the things that were being put in, everyone but Mira looked at him in shock at what was being added, with Natsu also looking a little grumpy. Wakaba rubbed his head in surprise as he thought about all this. "Man, this place is seriously getting reworked. How much is going into rebuilding this place?"

Sora then grabbed one of the papers and handed it to Wakaba. Not looking up, but feeling the inquisitive look from him, he responded. "That is the estimate for what it will take just to build the main hall with the material costs. I also got good at math and business in order to make the most profits I could as a craftsman, so I'm also figuring out how much material would be needed and how much they cost, as well as preparing the orders themselves with the suppliers."

Wakaba nodded slowly in understanding, as he and Macao looked at the numbers on the sheet to see what they were working with. After a few seconds, their eyes bulged from their skulls. ""HOLY CRAP THAT'S A LOT!""

Sora shrugged. "Maybe, but don't worry about it. I'm taking care of a portion of it with some of my own funds from the years of freelancing I did while Makarov deals with the rest. He tried to argue with me that I shouldn't, but I told him I wasn't going to be using too much of my personal funds and was just going to make the burden easier on him."

Mira looked at the other five sunnily. "It was a really interesting conversation. Makarov tried to keep Sora from spending a good chuck of his money on us, but he finally caved after hearing how much Sora actually had to his name."

Happy tilted his head in curiosity, before turning to Sora. "How much is that?"

Sora looked at Happy with a smirk, before pulling up a blank piece of paper and writing a few numbers down. "Well, I plan on using this amount to help the guild's reconstruction, so it may give you an idea."

He then slid the page over to Happy, who then had the other 4 looking over his shoulder to see what he was doing, and they all paled at the number that he wrote down, all of them being unable to move or even make a sound while getting a chuckle out of Sora and a giggle out of Mira.

* * *

A while later, Sora was taking a break from the paper work and was happily surprised when Mira came by and placed a glass of Lemonade next to him. "Here. Thanks for all your hard work with the logistics of this."

"Not a problem." He then took a sip of the drink and let out a sigh of contentment. "Man, this stuff is good." He then got up off the table and put the papers in a box that was nearby. "I'll be taking a break and go looking around, see how everyone's doing."

"Of course. Feel free to take all the time you need to take a break."

"Roger that." He then walked off as Mira looked for other people who might need a drink.

As he was walking about, he saw a surge of water hit Natsu and Happy, passing Gray and leaving a bento in his lap as a result. Blinking away his surprise, he looked in the direction the water had flown and used his X-ray vision, helping him get more used to it, to see where the culprit was and was surprised to see a somewhat familiar face watching the trio from behind a wall.

Staying quiet, he walked up to and behind the spy, and spoke when they were right behind the culprit. "Can we help you, Juvia?"

The water mage of Phantom Lord jumped from the surprise, then turned to him with her back pressed against the wall. As she saw him, her face reacted in shock and recognition. "You! You're the one who hit Juvia and vandalized the base back before the Phantom Headquarters was mobilized!"

Sora nodded. "And you are the Phantom mage that kidnapped Lucy." The water mage flinched slightly at his tone. "Mind telling me what you're doing here?"

Juvia kept looking over her shoulder to the opening in the wall that showed Gray inspecting the bento with Natsu and Happy watching. "Um, uh, um, Juvia is, um…"

Sora raised an eyebrow, noticing the pink on her cheeks, then took another glance over at the others, before coming to a realization. He then looked back at Juvia. "Tell me…" She then snapped to attention at that. "If I left you alone, would you cause any harm to Fairy Tail?"

Juvia shook her head rapidly with her hands held up in front of her. "No! Juvia no longer wishes to fight Fairy Tail! Juvia merely went along with the master's wishes before because he and Phantom accepted Juvia, but Juvia doesn't want to do anything bad to Fairy Tail anymore! Juvia promises!"

Sora looked at her sternly for a little bit, before nodding at her. "Okay."

Juvia looked at him in surprise at that statement. "Okay?"

"Yup. So long as you don't cause any problems for the guild, I'll leave you be." He then walked off taking a sip of his lemonade. "Oh, and good luck."

Juvia blushed at having been found out so quickly, before sneaking another glance at Gray and seeing what he thought of the bento she made him, seeing him trying some after Erza had taken a bite.

Sora then walked up to the guys as Gray was trying a bite, acting as if nothing happened. "Yo. How you guys doing?"

They all looked at him, Erza sternly. "Oi, Sora. Why aren't you doing anything?"

"It's called a break. Doing logistics isn't as easy as some people may think it is." He then rubbed the side of his head with his open hand. "I swear I might start seeing numbers in my dreams if I keep this up much longer without a break."

Natsu threw his arms behind his head. "What's so hard about doing numbers?"

Sora grinned maliciously at the challenge and put down his lemonade.

A few minutes later, after giving Natsu a "simple" word problem, Natsu was curled up on the ground muttering with both hands on his head as he tried to think about how much material would be needed for the stairs, and how much those individual materials would cost down to the last board and nail. Gray, Erza, and Happy looked at the duo in shock, surprised at how much Sora was actually doing, how easily he was able get that out, and how much he might actually be figuring out.

Sora himself then stretched his arms above his head as Natsu continued his torment, then picked up his lemonade again. "And that, is why you don't underestimate numbers. I made that mistake a few times too many when I was freelancing, so I made sure I wouldn't again."

"I don't know whether to be impressed, or frightened by that." Gray looked at them cautiously, Erza and Happy in silent agreement with that statement since they all had trouble with the words Sora had said to put Natsu like that.

"Natsu, Gray, Erza, Sora…" They all turned their attention to the voice, Natsu forgetting about the mental pain from thinking so much, and they saw Loke holding keys in his hand. "Could you give these to Lucy for me? They're her keys."

Gray and Natsu walked up to him, Natsu taking the keys. "I was wondering why you hadn't been around lately!"

"You were looking for these this whole time?"

Loke adjusted his glasses and Happy flew over to him worriedly. "Are you okay? You look really pale…"

"Thanks. I'm fine." Sora narrowed his eyes at Loke's blatant lie, knowing he was just as bad as he looked. "Whew. Being a gentleman is tough."

"Lucy doesn't seem to be here. Maybe she still hurts too much to be up and about." Happy stated.

Natsu put his hands on his sides as he looked at Loke. "We can go pay her a visit then. You should come too, Loke."

"I'll pass. You know I'm no good around celestial wizards." Loke then turned to leave at that.

"Really? Even though this is Lucy we're talking about?"

Sora stared at Loke's retreating back as Erza calmly reminded Natsu. "Natsu. Everyone has their strengths and weaknesses. Don't pry too much."

Sora however, decided against leaving him be and went after him. "I'm gonna make sure he's as okay as he says. You guys tell me how it goes with Lucy."

After hearing words of confirmation, he jogged after Loke, catching him standing still and looking off into space. "What happened?"

Sora's words snapped him out of it and he turned to Sora in surprise. "S-Sora?"

"My ring should be keeping you from being like this for at least another month. That is the WORST case of what I've made your rings capable of. So. What. Happened?"

Loke looked down for a few moments, before looking at him with a sad smile. "When Phantom attacked, I went to go make sure Lucy was okay. When I got there, it was when Gajeel was taking her away. I did everything I could to try and stop him. Meaning… I left my rings alone."

Sora widened his eyes at that. "You gotta be kidding me… You used your Celestial Spirit powers?! You idiot!" Sora then looked around and kept his voice from rising any higher, before turning back to Loke. "You might as well have poked a hole in a bucket before trying to fill it with water! A REALLY BIG HOLE! You already don't have much longer, and now you've gone and lowered your time even less! I get why, but come on!"

Loke looked back down at that. "Yeah… Sorry for making your efforts pointless."

Sora face-palmed at that with his eyes closed. "Son of a…" He then removed his hand and looked around, before grabbing the guy by the shoulder and dragging him along. "Come here you suicidal bastard."

"H-Hey, what's…?

"Just don't. I'm not going to let you die on your own. Not before you make things right by Lucy at the very least." He then found them a secluded area and pushed him into it, then pulled Loke's wrist out and made a band of Citrine around it. "You said before that your power lets you wield light like Natsu can fire, right?"

"Uh, yeah, sort of."

Sora then did the same with the other wrist. "Then in theory, I can use my Citrine to fill you with more light, thus extending your lifespan… Probably." He then glared at Loke, putting chills down his spine. "And you can bet your shiny ass I'm reinforcing your ring again, but this time I'm going to be weakening the wind magic and pouring the excess into your stabilizing magic. So don't do anything too crazy just yet, you got that?!"

Loke looked at him nervously, almost seeing a second Erza in front of him. "Y-Y-Yeah, you got it…"

Sora nodded sternly as he began to work on the bands and rings, Loke giving him an appreciative smile as he worked.

* * *

"Haaah…" Sora was now walking down the path, looking to meet up with the others. "Really, that guy is just a pain." He then looked up to the sky. "How can he be ready to throw his life away just like that…? Nothing gets solved trying to get yourself killed over something you couldn't control."

He then shook his head as he let his thoughts once again go back to his fight with Jose, still wanting to know what exactly happened. Even now, he had no idea what he had done, or how he had done it. He remembered hearing Jose's demented thoughts, remembered being incredibly angry, and then… his body just moved on its own, as if he were merely an observer. It was still him fighting, but he had thought himself to have too little magic left to fight, let alone to wield THAT kind of power. It almost felt like his heart was being supercharged by… something.

His hand absentmindedly reached up to his heart at that, feeling the smooth crystal beneath the cloth. 'Just what the hell am I capable of…? Nothing like that was ANYWHERE in the notes I took and the stuff I memorized. Then again, my eye and heart weren't mentioned either, so who knows what else I'm capable of. Still… What the hell even was that back there?' After a few more minutes, he found himself outside the apartment complex that Lucy was staying at, and went to open the front door.

Only for it to open itself right in his face and have the force of it knock him into the canal. As the door opened to reveal a confused Natsu, Erza and Gray walked out from behind him as Happy flew up beside them. "Huh? What was that?"

In answer to Natsu's question, Sora popped his head out of the canal and coughed out some water, before glaring at Natsu. "Oi, what the hell man?! Be careful when opening doors!"

Natsu grimaced as he realized what he did. "Oh, man, sorry about that." Happy then went over to pull him out of the canal.

When Sora was back on the street, he thanked Happy and started to wring the water out of his clothes. He then turned an irritated look at the others. "So, you guys were in a rush. What's going on?"

That got all 4 of them to re-adopt looks of panic as Happy flew in front of his face. "Sora! Lucy's not here! She's leaving Fairy Tail to go home!"

Sora blinked for a moment, then said the most intelligent thing he could think of. "… Eh?"

* * *

A train ride and a lot of running later, and it was evening when they were now on the Heartfilia estate running to find Lucy. After a while of looking around, Sora managed to use his eye to find her location and guided them to a graveyard. As soon as she was within normal sight, they all called out to her. "Lucy!"

Lucy was startled at hearing her name like that, then turned in shock at seeing them there. "Why are you-?!"

Happy flung himself into her chest while crying. "Lucy!"

Natsu and Gray ran right up to her while Sora and Erza hung back. "What the hell Lucy! Why would you leave Fairy Tail like that?!"

"Seriously, after everything we went through to make it so you could stay, you could at least come to us before you up and left."

"Wait, guys, I wasn't leaving Fairy Tail!"

""Huh?""

When Gray and Natsu looked at her confused, she explained further. "I only came back to give my dad a piece of my mind. I know I left a note saying I was going home, but I never said I was leaving the guild. I was just coming by to make sure I had no regrets and to make sure Dad wouldn't try something like this again!"

Natsu and Gray looked at her in shock, while Erza held back some laughter and Sora sighed from the overreactions that they had. "You guys… You all really blew this out of proportion didn't you?"

Gray then began to sulk while Natsu went off angrily, as Lucy laughed at their antics and hugged the happily crying cat to her chest.

After a quick goodbye from Lucy to the staff that worked the estate, the 6 of them began their trek back to the train. A while later, they were walking down a dirt path when Lucy spoke up. "I am truly sorry for making all of you worry."

Sora smirked at her. "Don't worry about it. These guys freaked out a little when they thought you weren't coming back, but all should be good now."

Natsu looked at the cat flying next to him with a frown. "Happy cried the whole time."

"Natsu was sobbing as well!" Happy retorted.

"A-As if…"

"Really? I am sorry…" Lucy looked at them both nervously.

Gray looked around at the houses around them. "But for crying out loud, this town is really enormous."

"The tranquility is simply remarkable." Erza looked to the sky, enjoying the quiet scenery.

"Oh, this isn't a town. This is part of our garden." Lucy said as if it were normal. She then pointed over to a mountain in the distance. "Our land reaches all the way to that mountain over there."

Natsu and Gray looked at the mountain in question, paling as they thought about how much money Lucy was born to, as the girl in question looked at them in confusion. "Huh? What's the matter, everyone?" The two of them then saluted straight forward, almost looking like statues at this point, freaking Lucy out.

"RICH GIRL OVERLOAD!" Gray exclaimed.

"CASUAL BRAGGING OVERLOAD!" Natsu cried out.

Happy then flew over to Erza, saluting to her like a soldier, as the duo were dancing around, now officially broken in the head. "Natsu and Gray are done for. Captain Erza, your orders please!"

Erza simply looked to the sunset. "Haaah… The sky sure is blue…"

Happy then flew up in a panic. "Medic! Captain Erza is out of commission!"

As they all continued their wacko routine, Lucy looked at them all nervously as Sora whistles next to her. "Wow. I think you really broke them this time."

Lucy then turned her head to Sora a bit cautiously. "Y-You aren't about to freak out too, are you?"

"Nah, I already knew the extent of the Heartfilia fortune before I even met you guys. I even worked for a few people who had large fortunes of their own, though this is still the largest estate I've ever seen." Sora then held a hand over his eyes as he looked at the mountain she pointed at before. "You sure you don't own the mountain too? Or does it just stop there?"

"Oh, we have a bit of the mountain too, with a lodge for hunting as well."

"Nice. Not so much for the fellas that get hunted, but still cool."

They both then looked back at the varying freak-outs by the others, then laughed a bit. They then went back to heading for the trains as the group managed to recover from their shock.

* * *

Several days later, Sora was sitting at the new make-shift bar next to Lucy as Mira made an announcement behind the counter. "Everyone! The request section is now reopened. Even though it is just a temporary counter, please take up as many as you can!" The entirety of the guild in earshot cheered and went to see what sorts of jobs were available as Lucy and Sora watched.

Lucy looked on with amusement. "What's with them? Usually they are just slacking around and refuse to do any requests."

"They're probably hoping to use it as a chance to not need to work on the guild hall. It's one thing to sling magic around and another to do manual labor like this." Sora's joke got the 2 girls laughing a little.

Lucy then looked around the area. "Oh yeah, I haven't seen Loke around lately…"

Mira looked at Lucy smugly. "Ah, so Lucy has finally fallen for Loki's magical charm." Sora nearly choked on his lemonade at how he laughed at that.

"That's not it!" Lucy shouted comically at Mira, not helping Sora recover. She sat back down and sighed before she continued, pulling out her gate keys. "I heard that he was the one who tracked down these keys for me, so I want to thank him properly."

"Sure. I will tell him if I see him." Mira said, as Sora turned to her after finally recovering.

"Same here. I'll even drag him over to ya if I have to." Lucy nodded, laughing a little at the mental image of Sora dragging Loke around.

Mira then placed her hands against the counter as she looked at Lucy inquisitively. "Come to think of it, were your Spirits angry at you? For dropping the keys."

Lucy straightened up at that, then looked away sheepishly. "'Mad' doesn't even begin to describe it…"

Sora looked at her cautiously. "How bad was it?"

Lucy closed her eyes as she relived the memory of how Aquarius was, then reached back and rubbed her behind. "Just thinking about it makes my butt hurt again…"

"Oh my…" Mira said nervously as Sora shook his head at the Spirit's behavior, silently wishing he never meets the one that was so angry… at least not at a bad time.

Gray then walked up, preparing some ice magic in his hand having heard the last bit. "Need me to cool it off?"

"That is casual sexual harassment." Lucy deadpanned herself, not even looking at him.

Happy then flew over, a mischievous look on his face. "Lucy, show me your bright red butt."

"That is unadulterated sexual harassment!" She exclaimed.

Natsu then showed up holding some fire in his hand and looking at Happy mischievously. "I wonder what her facial expression will be if I sting it even more?"

"WHAT ARE YOU, THE DEVIL?!" Lucy shouted at him, Sora laughing at the entire spectacle.

Suddenly, a large barrel came flying out of nowhere and smacked right into Natsu, taking all their attention away from the comedic moment. They then heard an angry shout from Erza. "Do you dare to repeat that?"

Looking over, they saw her looking at someone furiously as they sat on a bench in front of her. Sora noted the blonde spiky hair, the spiked headphones over their ears, and the coat resting on their shoulders. The blonde sneered at Erza. "Then this time I will be blunt. Weaklings deserve no place in this guild." He then looked over at where Jet and Droy were. "You guys are pathetic. Getting humiliated by Phantom in such a manner. I'm glad I never bothered to learn your names." The two of them looked down in frustration at those words.

He then turned his attention to where Lucy was. "Oh, and there is the main cause, Miss Stellar Spirit user. You are the one-"

"Laxus!" Mira interrupted him as she and Lucy looked at him with hate. "The matter is closed. No one cares whose fault it is." Laxus then stood up from the table he was at and crossed his arms. "You have no right to say such things when you weren't even around to help us. Those are Master's words!"

Laxus smirked at that, before responding loudly. "So what? That has nothing to do with me! Though if I were around, you wouldn't be in such a pathetic-" He stopped as he noticed something out of the corner of his eye, and raised his arm in time to catch a spherical object, then sneered at the one who threw it. "Oh…? So the new guy has some guts."

Everyone turned in shock as Sora stood back up from throwing his projectile and glared back at Laxus. "Well, it's easy to stand up to someone when you don't have an ounce of respect for the other guy."

Every one of the onlookers held their breath, as Laxus looked at Sora darkly. "What was that, you little punk?" He began to spark with his lightning magic as he finished talking.

"Oh, you didn't hear me? Well then, you might want to check what I threw at you. It should tell you exactly what I think of your attitude."

"Hah?" Laxus raised an eyebrow as he turned his hand, looking at the purple crystal in his palm. Before he could even process it, the crystal exploded with a shock wave, sending him flying through an unfinished wall. Everyone present then looked on in shock as they saw Laxus go flying, looking between where he went and who sent him there.

"No freaking way…"

"Did he just send LAXUS flying away?!"

"Does that guy have a death wish!?"

Sora ignored the voices of even his friends as he watched the way Laxus had gone, dropping a pair of crystals on the ground as he waited. With a strange feeling in the back of his head, he didn't even need to turn around to know that Laxus was now right behind him, about to try and punch him into the ground.

In response, he made the blue crystals on the ground spin, creating a twister of water at his feet that carried him up and above the attempted strike which simply plowed through the twister. While up in the air, he formed his usual gauntlets and greaves and faced the S-class mage when he landed a small distance away.

Laxus looked at Sora appraisingly, as the rest of the guild was both motionless and silent. "… So… this is the mage that helped Erza defend against the Jupiter weapon. I'll admit, I'm surprised that you were even able to push me, though you're smaller than I thought you'd be."

Sora mock grinned at him as he held his hands out wide. "I live to surprise people. Including arrogant pricks who think they're better than others and look down on everyone else."

"Is that so?"

"Big time. Especially someone who doesn't even care if their guild is threatened and nearly wiped out." Sora once again glared at the man in front of him. "What kind of person turns their back on their friends when they need him?"

"Hmph! Why should I care about the people in this guild? The majority of these people are weak beyond comparison. I figured this whole thing would weed out the weaklings, but I guess they hung around a little better than I hoped."

Sora's eyes widened as he took in those words. "… What was that?"

"This guild is weak, but when I inherit it, I'm going to kick every one of these weaklings to the curb, along with everyone who would dare to rebel against me! I will create the ultimate guild! The strongest guild ever that no one would dare look down upon." He then clenched a lightning coated fist. "Maybe I should start with you?"

A shadow covered his eyes, as Sora crossed his now glowing gauntlets across his chest, many of the mages worried about the fight about to break out. Sora then threw his arms to both sides…

And his constructs disappeared in a flash.

Even Laxus looked at Sora in confusion, as Sora looked at him with a bored expression. "I'd rather not cause more damage to this place than we did already, and I no longer see the point of fighting someone as arrogant as you."

Laxus glared at him in anger. "What?!"

Sora then turned and walked back to his seat at the counter, going right past Laxus without a care in the world. "I said I won't fight you. You wouldn't be worth the damages the way things are right now."

As he sat down and started to drink his lemonade again, Laxus looked at him in fury as he moved to punch him again. Several of the others tried to warn him, but the attack was moving too fast for them to do anything themselves.

Without even turning around or lowering his drink, Sora raised his open arm perpendicular to the ground as a band of yellow crystal formed around his wrist and a large magic circle formed behind him, stopping Laxus' strike just before he would hit.

Laxus stepped back in anger as the circle dropped, and Sora put his drink down and spoke, not even looking at him. "I told you, I won't fight you. That said, I will prevent any attack you attempt at me, so don't bother. After all, it's no fun to wail on someone who won't fight back."

Everyone once again held their breaths as Laxus glared at the back of Sora's head. After a few moments of silence… "Hmph. Guess you really do have guts. That, or you're a coward who is scared of a fight."

"Say what you want. I've stopped caring about you, like you've stopped caring about this guild." Sora then took another sip of his drink as he continued not looking at Laxus.

"… Whatever. I'm outta here." Laxus then walked away in disdain and looked at the gathered mages. "You all better get ready for the new management coming this way. It's only a matter of time." With a flash of his magic, he was gone.

The guild was torn between looking at where Laxus was in anger, or looking at Sora by the counter in shock. After a few minutes, everyone else calmed down and began to go back to what they were doing, Lucy taking back her seat at the counter. "Man, that was intense!" She looked over at Sora who was just finishing his drink. "I seriously thought that guy was going to kill you ya know!"

Sora shrugged as he put the glass down. "Meh, I've seen scarier back when I was dungeon delving with my family." Mira then came over to him with a refill. "Oh, thanks Mira."

"You're welcome!" Mira then curiously peered at the band that slowly faded from Sora's arm. "So, what was that?"

Sora smirked at the question. "Something I've been experimenting with for a few days. Only good for blocking physical attacks, unless I also have time to prep it to guard against someone's magic. That's why the sphere I threw at Laxus didn't blow up at first; it was getting a sample of his magic. Once it blew, I prepared to create this band to guard against his magic, and kept talking to keep him stalled. But it takes a bit too much time and effort to put together so far, so I'll need a lot more practice before I even think about using this frequently." He then frowned. "Though his attitude really did make me not want to fight anymore. Really, how much of an asshole can you be?" He shook the thought from his head and took another sip of his drink.

Lucy sighed. "Seriously though, what was that nonsense he said about inheriting the guild?"

"It isn't nonsense." Lucy looked at Mira in confusion. "You see, Laxus is actually the Master's grandson."

Lucy processed that for a few seconds, before raising both hands to her head and looking back in shock. "EH?!"

Sora finished his next sip and looked at the drink as he recalled what he knew. "Laxus Dreyer, grandson to Makarov Dreyer and a Lightning mage. S-class. Really strong, and apparently really arrogant."

Mira nodded at the description, and looked back at Lucy sadly. "That said, it's very likely Laxus will be the next Master when he retires."

"Y-You can't be serious…" Lucy looked at her in sorrow, thinking about the guild being run by him. "But I don't like the idea of someone being our Master when he treats his fellow members like that…"

Mira nodded sadly at that. "People say that's why our Master is having a hard time retiring…"

"O-Oh…"

Sora shook his head at that. "If I were in his shoes, I'd be having the same issue…"

Natsu looked back at where Laxus had gone and felt pissed again. "That bastard. I was this close to going and hitting the guy myself." He then rounded on Sora who wasn't even looking at him. "Oi, Sora! Why'd you have to go and be the one to attack him?!"

Sora shrugged, still not looking. "Because it was my first time meeting the guy and I was already pissed. Also, his face looked like it was begging to be punched or something. Good enough for ya?"

Erza put a hand on Natsu's shoulder to calm him down. "That's enough. You'll only tire yourself out that way." She then showed him a smile. "Anyway, what do you say? Feel up to a job?"

"Huh?" Natsu turned to her in surprise.

"With Gray and Lucy too, of course." She turned to look at the mages in question as she spoke, surprising the both of them.

"Huh?"

"Wha…?!"

Mira looked at Gray in amusement. "Gray, where are your clothes?" That got Gray to look down in shock.

Erza put her hands on her hips and smiled at them. "It feels like we've always been together since the Eisenwald incident."

Nearby mages were listening in on this themselves. "'Feels like it'? She noticed only now?" Wakaba asked.

"It was pretty obvious to anyone. Was she not paying attention?" Macao stated.

"That's Erza for you." Cana said.

Erza then looked happily at the others. "What do you say we form an actual team? It'll be the 4 of us… Oh, five counting Happy!"

As the 4 others gave their own reactions, Sora looked confused and turned to Mira. "Wait, were they an unofficial team this whole time?"

"Uh-huh. Before, it was just Natsu, Happy, and Lucy, with the other two coming along. But now it looks like Fairy Tail's strongest team is about to be official!" Sora sweat-dropped at her cheer, as he watched them interact.

Lucy looked down sheepishly. "Are you sure you want someone like me though?"

"Not 'like' you!" She looked up in confusion at Natsu's voice as he leaned in excited. "We want _you_ specifically!"

"Aye!" Happy popped in, adding his two cents.

"It just wouldn't be the same without you, you know?"

Lucy looked at his cheerful face for a few moments, before adopting a happy look of her own. Cana then looked back at the older mages. "Then it's official. Say hello to Fairy Tail's strongest team."

"This is great!"

"But is Lucy actually that tough?"

Al cut in with a few others behind him. "I don't think I'd stand a chance if she sicced Aquarius on me!"

"She's got a sharp mouth too." Droy said.

Jet grinned. "She's the best in many different ways…"

Sora then turned his attention to the fire and ice duo to see them about to go at it.

""Me, teamed up with him…?!"" The both of them growled under their breath.

"Have a problem with that?" Erza cut in, making them both back up in fear.

""No! We're ecstatic!""

Sora laughed at their expense, as Erza turned to him. "Say, Sora. What do you say to joining our team as well?"

Sora looked back at her with a blank look, then waved his arm dismissively. "Sorry, but not yet at least. I still need to work out a few more numbers, and I still have yet to get my guild mark anyway. So I'll sit out for now." He then grinned at them. "Besides, you guys are already fully equipped to break through anything in your way."

Natsu looked over at him dejectedly. "Ah, come on man! It'll be fun!"

Sora just looked at him suspiciously. "You just want to eat more of my Ruby flames, don't you?"

Natsu widened his eyes, then looked around with a slightly sweaty face and a guilty look. "I-I don't know wh-what you're talking about!"

Sora laughed a bit more, before giving Natsu a calm look. "Relax man, I'll think about joining your guys' team later. For now, I'll stick to helping around here until they don't need me to do it anymore. And once I've gotten my guild mark."

"The Master should be getting back from his summons soon." Sora looked at Mira as she spoke happily. "And he should be bringing a newly issued stamp with him, so we can probably induct you later today."

"Oh, sounds awesome! Can't wait." He then turned back to the others. "Anyways, you guys go have fun with your next assignment. I'll stick around here and make sure everything goes smoothly."

They all nodded and looked to Erza, who told them the job was for rooting out a Dark Guild operating out of a town called Lupinas. After a quick discussion with the others and a farewell with the assembled mages, they headed out.

Sora chuckled, then got lost in his own thoughts for a bit, before a piece of information he heard about sometime back popped up, causing him to look at Mira. Catching his look, she turned to him in question. "Oh, do you need something?"

"No, just had a question that popped into my head."

"Oh. What is it?"

"… Are you the same Mirajane once called the "She-Devil", S-class mage of Fairy Tail?"

"Oh! Yep. That was me!" She looked at him with a sunny smile as she said those words.

"… I just can't see it." Sora shook his head as he looked at her, trying to see how this cheery girl could possibly be called a devil of any sort. "How can someone as nice as you have once held a title like that?"

"Well, that's a bit of a long story."

Sora raised his hand as if to stop her. "Then forget it. If it's about anything painful, then you don't need to tell me."

"No, it's okay. I'm alright with telling it. You see, I joined Fairy Tail when I was little with my brother and sister."

"Sister?"

Mira nodded at that. "Yeah. The three of us were Taken Over mages. Elfman used Beast Soul, our little sister Lisanna used Animal Soul, and mine was known as Satan Soul. Because of my magic, and my slightly embarrassing past of being a bit of a bully, I became known as the She-Devil."

Sora's eyes widened at that. "No way… You? A bully?"

Mira giggled a little at that. "Yup. I actually scared as many people as Erza does now. Not too surprising, since we saw each other as rivals back then."

Sora leaned back at that, almost spitting out the lemonade he had just taken a sip of. "No freaking way… Rivals with Erza?! Exactly how bad are we talking here?!"

"Hehehe, let's just say we were both little terrors, and I used to have a bit of a mouth on me."

Sora shook his head to get rid of the shock in his head, before looking at her hesitantly. "So… Why aren't you like that now?"

Mira looked down sadly at that. "Well, it was about 2 years ago that everything changed. I had taken my siblings with me on a job. It was a year into me being an S-class mage. We went to help subjugate a creature known as "The Beast". Me and Elfman went to take care of it while Lisanna went to evacuate the townspeople nearby. Everything was going well for a while, until I let my guard down. The Beast was about to kill me, when Elfman tried to do something he wasn't able to do up until then…"

Sora then remembered something Erza told him during the battle against Phantom Lord. "That was the time he tried for a full Take Over, wasn't it?"

Mira nodded. "Elfman had trouble using Take Over magic on his whole body back then, and could only do a single arm at a time. But he still attempted it, and absorbed the Beast into himself to protect me. But the Beast's power was too much for him and he lost control. I watched in horror as my little brother's body was set against me, too terrified of hurting him. After a while, I was wounded and cornered against a cliff. That was when Lisanna got back, and I told her what had happened."

Sora realized where this was going, and didn't have the courage to have Mira stop telling her story. "When she realized what had happened to Elfman, she went and tried to help him regain his senses and take back control of his body. She walked up to him, confident that he wouldn't hurt her..." Tears welled up at the corners of her eyes. "The image of her being struck hard enough to launch her into the woods far away became etched into our eyes…"

Sora reached out and put a comforting hand on her own, surprising her with the action as she wiped the tears from her eyes, giving him a grateful smile. "Thank you." She then took a deep breath and pulled up a stool so she could sit down behind the counter before continuing. "The attack led to Elfman regaining control over himself, pushing the Beast and its wrath deep down within himself. But the damage had already been done. That day changed us both, me more so than him. The shock of what happened not only took away my will to fight, but led to me losing access to a large amount of my magic. So now here I am. Ex-She-Devil of Fairy Tail, gone from a terrifying figure, to the person you see now."

Sora looked down as she finished her tale. "… Sorry, for having you tell me this. It must be painful to think about…"

Mira raised her hands complacently. "No, it's okay. We're both moving forward, one step at a time. In fact, Elfman finally managed to perform a full takeover during the incident with Phantom and managed to make the Beast's power his own. And even if I can't be as helpful to the guild as I used to be, I'm at least still doing some good."

Sora shook his head. "Maybe, but still. I know how hard it is talking about lost family, so I shouldn't have made you tell me about this."

Mira looked at him in surprise. "You know? What do you mean?"

Sora looked down at his now empty glass, and raised it to Mira with a sad smile. "Hand me a refill, and I'll tell you a story of my own…"

* * *

After Sora had told his own past to Mira, she was bawling herself. "Oh, you pour thing! I had no idea something so bad had happened to you!"

This time, Sora was the one trying to placate Mira. "Easy, it's okay. I at least have a chance at getting my family back. It's nothing compared to what happened with your sister."

"But it happened to your ENTIRE family! You had no one left to comfort you after you went through all that! No one should have to lose their entire family to such a tragic fate!"

Sora chuckled nervously at how quickly and dramatically their positions had been reversed, then offered her a proposal. "A-All right, how about this. The two of us are equally tragic, and we move on from here, okay?"

Mira sniffed a few times, before wiping the tears from hers eyes and giving him a solemn smile. "Okay, I guess that's fair enough." Sora sighed in relief, glad no one had seen him making Mira cry. He was fine watching what happened when Gray caused that, and didn't want people looking at him that way.

"Oh, I see someone is adjusting to Fairy Tail quite nicely." Sora turned around and saw Master Makarov walking up to the bar, still in his Wizard Saint robe from the hearing.

"Oh, Master! Welcome back!" Mira warmly welcomed him as he took a seat at the counter. "How was the hearing?"

"It actually went better than I expected. Not only was Phantom held responsible and disbanded, but Fairy Tail was found completely innocent!" He then let out a sigh with his eyes closed. "Honestly, I was rather worried about what they might do to us, considering our history."

Sora laughed at that. "Gotta say, your guild is definitely a lively one."

"Hahaha, I wouldn't have it any other way. Though if these brats could at least control the amount of damage they cause, I would have to worry a lot less."

Sora raised an eyebrow at him, smirking at him. "Oh? So you have no problem with Natsu, Gray, and Erza officially being on the same team?"

Makarov flinched at that, remembering what happened during the Eisenwald incident, before looking at Mira in his chipper voice with his chipper face. "Mira-chan! Ale!"

"Yes, yes, coming right up Master."

Mira then moved to get some booze as Sora chuckled at his reaction to the news. He then turned to him with a grin. "Well, Lucy's on the team too, so they might manage to hold back the amount of damage they cause."

"Haah… I can only hope so." He then took the mug Mira placed in front of him and chugged it, releasing a satisfied sigh. "Ahhh, that hits the spot." He then had a face of realization, as he dug around in the pocket of his jacket. "Oh, that's right! I almost forgot!" He then pulled out a stamp for placing Guild Marks on members, catching the attention of both Mira and Sora. "Finally got a new one! I think we ought to make sure it works, what do you kids say?"

Sora grinned, as Mira picked up the stamp and looked over at him, asking him where he wants it. Taking a few moments to think about it, he stood up and lifted his shirt just shy of revealing the hunk of crystal acting as his heart, and Mira placed the stamp on his left abdomen. After a slight tickle, Mira removed the stamp and a bright light shined off of the mark, before becoming a gold mark of Fairy Tail.

Mira smiled at him brightly as the mark settled. "Welcome to Fairy Tail, Sora!"

Sora smiled at her and the Master. "Thanks." He then got up and stretched. "Well, since I am now an official member, I had better get to work on finishing up the numbers as quick as I can. Anything else you want to discuss about the future guild hall?"

Makarov nodded his head in thought. "Actually, there are a few things I have thought about…" The three of them then spent some time talking things out, either for the guild's reconstruction or just idle chatter.

* * *

A/N: Aaaand scene! What'd you guys think? Took me some time to feel satisfied with this, especially with how I should deal with the scene with Laxus. Was tempted to leave that to Natsu like the canon, but this was more fun. And making Sora in charge of resources just made a sort of sense with me, since Maker mages tend to be good at making things and he already has a somewhat similar experience to call upon.

Anyway, the next chapter will be about Loke then after that will be the start of the Tower of Heaven arc. Hope you guys enjoy what I have planned, and hope to see some reviews letting me know what you think. See you guys next time.


	8. The Lion's Fate

A/N: Alright, it's finally time to divulge how Sora knows Loke. I hope you all like what I put in here as I had a bit of trouble envisioning this at first. With luck, I did a good job. If not, let me know what I could have done better.

Review Responses:

 **Pokeheroaadyn** : Glad you enjoyed the chapter, though I do understand where you're coming from. Believe me, I'm trying to limit myself with what powers he does and doesn't have. I'm mostly doing it only when I can't envision any other way to progress the story in a way that feels right. Any new powers he gets will typically come with a drawback from here on, so that he at least stays balanced out a little. Please let me know how I'm doing in the future, because people who leave honest reviews like you help me to improve my story and myself.

 **Theboblinator** : Glad to have a new supporter! Yeah, it did take some time to work out what I intended to do, but the results are well worth it. And yeah, I'm leaning towards Mira as well, seeing as I'm also a bit of a fan of the Canon pairings. And so, have another chapter and feel free to let me know what you think in the future!

* * *

Time went by from there, Sora helping out with the guild reconstruction both physically and logistically, and everyone continued to do jobs and rebuilding. Sora had a good laugh as Team Natsu destroyed half of Lupinas when they did their job there, knowing that it was going to happen whether they tried to or not. And when they took a job to help out a play, he made sure to go and watch with how they suddenly went from stage-crew to actors. They really brought the house down (figuratively AND literally)!

Meanwhile, Sora kept doing what he could to extend Loke's life just a little longer, making sure each of his rings were functioning perfectly and the bands he more-or-less forced on his wrists were doing their job and as charged as possible. And when Loke decided he should do a few more jobs while he could, Sora decided to go with him, both for the experience and to make sure he didn't kill himself.

Sora and Loke were walking through a forest on their way to their destination, and Loke looked over at him. "So, what was so special about this job again? You really insisted on it."

"Nothing much. Just a job about dealing with a couple of punks going after girls on their own. Just don't like the idea of people doing stuff like that."

"Well, you got a good point there."

"I know. So, how are you feeling?"

Loke looked at the light yellow bands as he answered. "Not too bad. These bands actually seem to be doing the trick at keeping my energy up."

"That's what they're for. They aren't a perfect replacement for what you need, but they should tide you over for a while at least."

"Well they are certainly doing that at least. I also hear you used this for inspiration for a shield spell of sorts?"

"Urgh." Sora face palmed dejectedly at that, actually catching Loke off-guard. "Don't remind me of that please. It is WAY too much of a far cry from actually being viable for regular use."

"Huh? But you really did stop Laxus' attack with it, didn't you?"

"Yeah. Once." Sora then looked through the trees with a grim expression. "Honestly, that was way more of a bluff than I let on." Loke looked at him in disbelief as he said that. "The idea was closer to a small scale version of that Citrine Palace I used with Erza, which means I still felt the attack. Even then, it took way more magic than I let on just to set it up, and even more just to keep it active. If he hadn't called my bluff of being able to stop all his attacks without fighting back, he might have actually used my face as a tool to remodel the new bar. I may have wanted to shut him up, but I know full well he's S-class for a reason. Maybe if I one day discover a gem-type that makes me immune to lightning, then maybe I'll try going toe-to-toe with him for real. But he's way too scary as I am now."

Loke just blinked at him. "Wait, you were scared back then?! Everyone was saying it was like you did that every day!"

"Take down enemies with enough power to be able to level a city? Nope. Lie my ass off with a fake emotion on my face? Hell to the yeah. I'm a thief and a trickster, not a combat expert. The only reason I didn't divulge that with everyone is because I don't want that information somehow making its way to Laxus. If he founds out how much I bluffed him, I might really die!"

Loke continued to stare at him in disbelief, before laughing loudly. "Hahaha! Oh man, now THAT is definitely the definition of courage if you know you don't stand a chance, yet challenge them anyway."

"One of the things I had to learn before I could go with my family on their treasure hunts." A nostalgic smile graced his face as he recalled the good ole days. "It is okay to be afraid; just remember to never let your fears control you." He then placed a hand on Loke's shoulder and smiled smugly at him. "Maybe I can teach you a few things? It might even let you have a normal chat with Lucy!"

"Easy for you to say. You know how bad I am around Celestial mages and even WHY I'm like that."

"And yet, you literally put your life on the line trying to save her during the Phantom incident. Do you really think she's like other Celestial mages at this point?"

"…"

Loke stayed quiet in contemplation as they kept walking, not even looking where they were going. Much to Sora's enjoyment when he saw the "other" reason he picked this job. He then raised his arm as he called out to the people ahead. "Oh, hey guys! What are you all doing here?" Loke looked up in surprise, surprised to see Team Natsu up ahead having noticed them.

The five then made their way over to them. "What a coincidence!" Gray said.

"You guys have work out here?" Natsu asked curiously.

"Yeah. You guys too?" Loke replied, surprised that these guys were here as well, then began to freak out when he saw Lucy walking up. "Lucy?!"

Lucy looked at him happily. "Perfect timing! I wanted to thank you for finding-"

"Well, we got work to do! Bye!" Loke then turned around and moved to run, going as fast as he could. After a few moments he realized he wasn't getting anywhere, his feet failing to find purchase on the ground.

Looking up, he then turned his head around to see a sunny smile on Sora's face as he held the hood of his jacket, keeping Loke in place as he simply chatted with the others. "So this is where you guys were going on your job. Man, this is pretty cool just running into each other like this."

Loke's eyes bulged as he realized what Sora had done. 'YOU CONNIVING LITTLE BASTARD!'

As the rest of Team Natsu were looking at Loke trying to escape Sora's grip, Happy flew up to him with a crystal he had found. "Sora! Look what I found! How much is this worth?"

Sora looked at Happy in surprise and took the crystal from him with his open hand and held it up to his left eye. "Hmm… This is actually pretty nice. Not top quality, but can definitely go for a good price with a bit of work. Where'd this come from?"

Lucy glared at the cat. "He swiped it from the bandits we were dealing with on our job, which means he stole it!"

Sora nodded at that as he kept looking at the crystal. "I see." Sora then looked over at her curiously. "So, it would be a bad idea to reshape and sell this later, right?" Lucy looked at him in shock before he put on a mischievous smile. "Joking, joking! Haha."

As Lucy let out a sigh of relief, Sora looked back at the spooked Loke, before pulling tightly on his jacket and making him land on his butt in the middle of them all. As he tried to get up, Sora placed both his hands on his shoulders, spun him to face the rest, and smiled at Lucy. "So, Lucy. You had something you wanted to say to Loke, right?"

As everyone had a slight sweat-drop at Sora's methods, Lucy cleared her throat, making Loke freeze, not able to pick fight or flight. "Actually, yeah." She then knelt down slowly, trying not to freak Loke out even more. "I wanted to thank you for finding my gate keys. I've been meaning to thank you since then, but you kinda kept on avoiding me."

Loke looked at her nervously, then down to the side. "I-It's not a problem, really."

"Regardless, I needed to thank you. So thank you, Loke. Truly." Lucy then gave him a bright smile as he looked at her in surprise.

"Uh, yeah, you're welcome."

Sora smiled himself, then let go of and helped Loke up. "Alright then, this was fun, but we should get going with our own job. I'd invite you guys along but it's nowhere as exciting as bandits, so we'll just get going now. See you guys back at the guild!" He then led Loke away as the others called out their own farewells.

After a while of walking through the woods, Loke just took a seat at the foot of a tree and let out a sigh as Sora chuckled at him. "So, how you feeling now?"

Loke glared at him at that. "A bit irritated now that I think of it. You knew from the start that our job would bring us near where they were, didn't you?"

"Why else would I suggest the scenic route through a forest rather than taking the nice and quick roads? Besides, you need to stop avoiding Lucy like that. If not for yourself, then at least for her."

Loke let out a sigh at that and picked up a nearby flower. "I guess you have a point there." He then watched the flower, before it quickly withered away at his touch. "I don't have much longer anyway it seems." He then looked up solemnly at Sora. "How much more time do you think I got left?"

Sora looked at him sadly at that. "… I think I can keep you alive for no more than a few days… After that…"

"I see… Well, I guess I should feel lucky that I've survived this long at least…" He then looked back at the ground. "Looks like my chance to apologize to Karen is finally coming up…"

"… Alright, enough of this." Loke looked back up at Sora curiously as he held a hand down to him. "You still have a job to do, so get off your ass so we can get to Hosenka already."

Loke blinked at him, before putting a smirk on his face and letting Sora help him up. "Alright, I guess I can wallow in my guilt later. Let's get going." They then started walking again. After a short while, Loke looked back at him. "By the way, I may have been occupied earlier, but I happened to notice you never gave them back that crystal Happy showed you. Care to explain yourself?"

Sora smirked, pulling out the crystal and appraising it once more. "Well, Hosenka Village is known for its hot springs. I may or may not have had the thought of checking them out, and we just so happen have something that can cover the cost of whatever we want to check out."

Loke raised an eyebrow at that. "I thought you were joking earlier?"

"Meh, half and half. Old habits die hard, and I did call myself a thief and trickster just recently. Besides, this thing was taken by bandits beforehand. Who could possibly know what they might have done with it after all this time."

Loke flashed him an amused smile. "And what's to stop me from telling someone that you wound up in possession of it?"

Sora pocketed the gem with a smile of his own. "2 things. Number 1 is that I also have a background as a jeweler, giving me a valid excuse to be carrying crystals around. And number 2," He looked at Loke with a smirk. "I can always threaten to put you at the bottom of a pit with Lucy and not let either of the two of you out until something fun happens." Loke paled slightly at that as Sora laughed at his expense, the two of them walking towards Hosenka Village.

* * *

Later, they spoke with the client and got a description of the individuals they were after, and were now wandering the area, taking in the sights and searching for their targets in the late evening. Sora looked around the oriental designed village in awe. "Man, this place is just incredible. I am definitely soaking in one of these hot springs before we leave."

Loke smirked at him. "Are you still going to pay in 'rocks'?"

Sora laughed, before tossing him a crystal. Looking at it in his hands, Loke noticed that the crystal seemed like the same one as before, but was a different shape. It now appeared to be a soaring eagle, the wings stretching out to become wider than the crystal originally was, as if Sora had truly molded it like clay. Something like this is supposed to be impossible with magic without either reducing the quality or accidently turning it into a Lacrima, and yet looked like it might flap its wings and fly out of his hands at any second!

Loke just looked at him, not even surprised anymore. "I'm a little worried you wound up a kleptomaniac at some point, but the stuff your taking actually has a good value to it so I'm just gonna settle for telling you that you shouldn't do this."

Sora then took back the crystal and pocketed it. "Meh. I may have taken crystals that I wasn't able to afford in the beginning so I could practice this, and may have kept up the habit. I always made sure they would be ones that wouldn't be missed though, such as a crystal taken from bandits."

Loke shook his head with a smile. "Man, you are definitely crazy enough to join Fairy Tail." He then looked at him curiously. "By the way, how's the new place?"

"Working out pretty nicely. I've just finished setting up the same Lacrimas I use at the place I stayed at before meeting Lucy and the rest, and I've been working on turning the basement into a kind of workshop. I'm still a damn good craftsman, so I may as well do some stuff with that when I'm not doing jobs at Fairy Tail. Already sent messages out to anyone who's hired me about the new circumstances, as well as arranged an ad in the paper, telling anyone who wants my services to come visit or send me a letter."

"Man, you really know how to keep yourself busy."

"Yeah, yeah. Sue me for not wanting to give up something I've done for years. Anyway, what was the description we were given again?"

Loke's face became serious at that. "We got 2 men, one with dark hair who's always shaking his head for some reason, and a guy with a red beanie over pale green hair that says "dude" almost every few seconds."

Sora raised an eyebrow with his own serious face. "Wow. These guys sound like creeps just from the description."

"You said it. Think you can find them with your eye?"

"Hmmm, considering where we are, I'd like to refrain from looking through any walls. So I just need to get up high and I can start scanning the public areas. Wait here a moment." He then propelled himself up to the top of a tower that was nearby with his Sapphire Greaves, and used his telescopic vision to sweep the streets, looking for anyone with that description.

After a few minutes, he found the targets… as well as someone he was not expecting to be here. "Oh hell…!" He then jumped down back to Loke. "I found them, but they're with Lucy!"

Loke looked shocked at that, then looked determined as Sora guided them down the fastest route they saw. After a short time, they were on the same street and Loke raced ahead, surprising Sora at his quick action and watching as Loke took out both individuals in one hit each, leaving the now safe Lucy in awe of him.

As the adrenaline wore off, Loke looked at her with a smile. "Are you alright?"

Lucy finally realized who it was that saved her, and was surprised. "Loke!"

Loke then moved into the bamboo nearby out of reflex, looking at her nervously. "I'm sorry…"

"For what?!" Lucy exclaimed.

"Ah, man. Get out of there already." Lucy then turned to see Sora walking up with a hand behind his head. "I could have sworn that little run-in earlier would have relaxed you a bit more."

"Sora?!"

Sora raised a hand in greeting as Loke slowly moved out of the bamboo. "Yo. Hey Lucy." He then looked to the other two that were there. "Hey Happy, hey Plue."

"Sora! I didn't know you guys were going to be here!" The short celestial spirit next to him made a few noises that made Sora think he was saying hi… maybe. Lucy had introduced him to the various spirits she possessed sometime after the incident with Laxus at his request, and the one he was looking at now made him think of a mix between a dog and a snowman.

"And I didn't expect to see you here. I thought you guys would have gone back to the guild already."

"Oh, well, we finished our mission earlier than anticipated, so we all agreed to come to the hot springs here." Lucy explained.

Sora nodded at that. "Okay, that makes sense." He then walked over to the two creeps on the ground, amazed at how one was still somehow shaking his head and the other one was muttering "dude" in his sleep. "… Okay, these guys are weirder than Fairy Tail standards, and that's saying something."

Loke walked up to Lucy and explained their job as Sora attached crystal restraints in case they woke up. Sora then turned to him as he finished. "Okay, they're restrained. Once we get them to the authorities, I'll remove these restraints in favor for theirs."

Loke nodded at that and rubbed the back of his head as he spoke to Lucy. "Well, we better get going. These guys aren't going to drag themselves to prison." Loke then grabbed the collar of one of the mages as Sora took the other.

"Say hi to the others for us." Sora called out as they began dragging them away, when Lucy called out.

"Hey, Loke." They stopped and Loke looked back at her. "Do you, wanna get a drink?"

Loke's eyes widened in shock and Sora's eyebrow raised, while Happy jumped up in excitement. "Wh-Wh-What a development…!" Plue then jumped up and mimicked Happy, making noises along with him.

Lucy looked annoyed at the blue cat. "I don't mean it like that, I was just asking if he wanted to talk or anything."

As Loke thought about what she said, he noticed the weight in his hand disappeared and looked to see Sora now holding both mages by the collar. "Go on man, go talk with her. It will be good for you, promise. I'll go deal with these guys."

Loke looked at him in surprise, then looked back at Lucy and the smile on her face, then turning back to Sora with a nervous smile of his own. "Alright. Thanks."

Sora nodded and began walking to where he was supposed to drop them off. After doing so, he went and managed to find someone willing to take the crystal figurine off his hands for some spending money for the town. He may already be considered loaded, but it never hurt to increase his resources even a little.

After a while, Sora walked around and took in the sights some more, idly walking around, no destination in mind. "Man, Loke better not screw things up now of all times…" After a while, he came across what looked like a diner/bar and Loke just casually standing by the door, deep in thought. "Well speak of the spirit. Yo, Loke!"

He then looked up and turned to Sora. "Oh, Sora…"

Sora froze in his tracks at his tone and the look in his eyes. "What did you do?"

Loke looked back down at that. "… I told her that I was dying…"

Sora's eyes widened at that. "… And?"

Loke shrugged his shoulders. "I chickened out. I played it off as some bad pickup line and she slapped me. She probably hates me now."

Sora looked at him for a few seconds, then let out a sigh, before grabbing his shoulder and making him start walking. "You really are an idiot, you know that?"

Loke said nothing as they walked. After a while, Sora spoke again. "So, why didn't you tell her it was the truth?"

Loke shook his head. "I shouldn't drag Lucy into all this. I'm not long from disappearing altogether, it wouldn't be right to tell her now." Loke then looked up in the sky in longing. "… She did remind me however, that I should probably hurry up and break up with the girls I've been seeing."

Sora then gave him a look. "… How many girls ARE you seeing?" Loke didn't respond, simply raising a hand to the back of his head as he nervously chuckled. "… Okay, different question. How many of them KNOW about each OTHER?" Loke just looked away at that, and Sora let out a sigh. "Alright, that's it. I need to relax in the hot springs or I won't be able to deal with this. Come on, we'll talk things over a little more there." Loke nodded silently as he followed Sora to the springs.

* * *

The next day, Sora was staying by Loke's side, both noticing that the bands were losing effectiveness more quickly than expected, with Sora wanting Loke's last day to be with a friend by his side. At the moment, they were watching Lucy unseen as she brooded at the bar and scared off Natsu and Gray.

Loke looked at her sadly as they remained out of sight. "Yeah, she's still mad at me."

"And?" He looked back at the stoic look on Sora's face. "Do you really want her last time meeting you to be one like that? Do you really want her last memory of you to be so negative?"

Loke looked back at her in thought. "Lucy…" He then felt a twinge of pain and raised his hand, both of them seeing his arm become transparent for a few moments. "Looks like it's almost time…"

Sora looked at his hand sadly. "… So, what will it be?"

Loke didn't respond for a few moments, and they then both heard someone calling for Loke. Taking a quick look, he ducked back behind the wall as Sora watched the girls Loke had broken up with last night after they got back to Magnolia. Apparently they were demanding answers out of Mira, who was beginning to panic.

Sora cringed when Mira got flustered and asked Lucy for help, causing the girls to turn on her in jealously, thinking Loke had picked her as his true love. In a panic, Lucy fled from the guild, the girls soon following after her.

Letting out a sigh, he looked back at Loke, who had heard enough of the debacle. "So, now you have to go see her to apologize for that." He then placed a hand on his shoulder, getting Loke to look at him as he spoke softly. "Come on man. One last talk with her, while you still have time."

Loke looked at his hand, now completely normal. After a few moments, he nodded. "Yeah… I need to do this now… I can't leave behind any more regrets…" With that, he looked up at the sky. "I don't want to go, before I at least talk to her one more time…"

Sora patted him on the back. "Atta boy. Come on, let's go over what you'll say to her so you don't screw up again."

* * *

Sora was waiting at night on a road out of town. Loke had asked that he not be around as he spoke with Lucy. As he stood solemnly, he heard the sound of footsteps and turned to see Loke walking over, a content look on his face. "The talk went good?"

Loke nodded at that. "Yeah. I managed to make this time a bit better on her, so I know she no longer hates me now. I also sent a formal statement to the guild, letting them know I'm leaving."

"You'd rather not burden them with your death, huh?"

"Something like that." He then walked up next to the crystal mage that bears his trust. "So, you sure you want to come with me?"

"No one deserves to be alone. Especially when it comes to something like this."

"… Fair enough… It's this way…" They then began walking out of town.

After a while, they stood on a ledge of rock that led out in front of a waterfall, forming a bridge to nowhere. At the end of the outcropping, there stood a stone grave marker, bearing the symbol of the Blue Pegasus guild and the name of a "Karen Lilica", with a vertical ring of stone bearing a bell inside it.

Loke looked down at the marker in regret, yet acceptance, while Sora stayed back and looked at both of them in frustration that he couldn't do more without breaking his word. "I'm sorry…"

Loke shook his head at those words. "Don't be. There's nothing that could possibly have been done."

"But it isn't fair. You didn't lay a finger on her. All you did was protest your treatment, and that of your friend. You don't deserve to have this happen to you…"

"But it was my fault. All I had to do was go to her maybe a week earlier. I was just about to go back and let her off, when Master Bob came and told me. If I had made that decision earlier, she wouldn't have become desperate enough to attempt a job she wasn't ready for, and she might still be alive."

Sora let out a sigh, knowing that nothing he said could possibly convince the fool otherwise, and sadly resolved himself to simply staying with him as his time came closer and closer.

Loke took a few steps closer to the grave as Sora hung back, unable to do anything for someone he considered his friend. "… Sora…" He flinched at that, and looked at Loke, who didn't take his eyes off the grave once. "… Thank you… For everything…"

Sora looked down. "… Yeah…" They then stood in silence, and waited.

And then, they heard something neither had expected. "Loke!" Surprised, they both turned to look at the person who had arrived; Lucy.

Sora stayed silent, as Loke turned fully to her. "Lucy?"

She looked at him kindly. "You know, everyone's pretty worried about you right now." Loke stayed silent, not knowing what to say as she took a look at the grave behind him. "That's Karen's grave, right?"

Loke looked at her in shock, realizing what she was insinuating at the same time Sora realized it. Their suspicions were confirmed as she continued. "The Celestial mage Karen… Your owner."

He remained silent as she looked at him, Sora staying out of the conversation as long as he could. Lucy then continued. "The Celestial Spirit Loke… No, that's not your name…" Lucy looked down for a moment at that, before looking back at him. "Your real name… It's Leo… Leo the Lion."

Sora was floored, not expecting Lucy to have found out who and what he is so quickly. Lucy then turned to him. "And the fact that you're here suggests you know as well."

Sora just blinked, then shrugged. "You got me there. I've known for a while, but it wasn't my place to tell."

Loke himself just looked impressed at her. "I'm surprised. How did you find out that I was a Spirit?"

Lucy put a hand on her hip as she smiled at him. "Don't forget, I myself am a Celestial mage with a lot of contracts. It wasn't too hard to figure out once I actually tried to look for answers." She then looked at him sadly. "But I should have figured it out sooner. Normally, once a key owner dies, their contract with their spirit is dissolved. The spirit is then forced back to the Celestial World until a new owner appears." Lucy then looked at the grave behind him. "Karen's contract with you should have ended when she died, yet here you are, still in the human world. Something happened to prevent your return, right?"

Loke was silent as she persisted. "Just like how humans can't live in the Celestial world, Spirits cannot survive long in the human world. The result would be your spiritual life energy being gradually drained over time… until you have nothing left and die."

Loke nodded at that. "Yeah. It's been about 3 years now."

"T-Three years?! How is that possible?!" Lucy looked at him in shock at how long he survived up till now.

Loke turned to look back at the grave. "I'm just as surprised at how long I've made it. I actually have Sora to thank for part of it."

Lucy turned to look at Sora in shock as he explained. "I ran into Loke-or rather, Leo-a little while after he became stuck here. He tried to pass off as human and asked for rings that would allow him to cast magic, but the moment I laid my eye on him," Sora dropped the illusion around his left eye, emphasizing his point. "I was able to figure out what and who he was. I was already using it to work on something and forgot to turn it off before looking at him. Not every day you look at someone and see a silhouette of the night sky in the same spot they are, especially one that had the constellation of the lion in the middle of it like someone was playing connect the dots. After I asked him what he wanted the rings for-which came after I told him I believed I knew who he was-he told me the why's and the how's. After that, I made it so the rings wouldn't just let him use the magic I put inside them, but would also help keep his celestial energy from leaking out as much."

Their attention was then pulled back to Loke when he spoke up. "And while I'm grateful for the help he's given me in surviving as long as I have, I have reached my limit… I feel almost no strength left in me."

"Maybe I can save you!" Lucy exclaimed. "Tell me why you can't go back! I'll try opening a gate for you!"

Loke looked away from her at that. "I don't need saving."

"What are you saying?! You _will_ die if you don't do something!"

"That's just it." Lucy turned around at Sora's words as he looked at Loke solemnly. "He doesn't _want_ to do anything about it. He _wants_ to die at this point."

Lucy's eyes widened in shock at those words, as she looked back at Loke. That was when the fallen star began to speak. "The reason I can't go back is simple. I broke the most important rule between owner and spirit. As a result, I was banished from the Celestial world for all eternity."

Lucy's shock rose even more. "Banished… for all eternity?"

Loke finally turned back to her. "It was my crime. I will accept everything, including death. I was a traitorous spirit. My owner, Karen… was killed by my hands."

Lucy looked even more shocked as she tried to process what he was saying, while Sora walked off into the tree line, letting them have this conversation without him to interrupt. 'Besides, Lucy would probably be the better person to see last, considering who and what he is, and what her personality is like.'

After a while of walking the path, Sora took a seat on a nearby rock and simply waited for someone to come by. If they came from the way into town, he'd ask them to wait or turn back. If from the waterfall… Well, he'd need to be there for them.

About half an hour or so later, Sora felt something off, and looked in the direction the magic power seemed to be coming from. Then felt very unnerved that it was coming from the waterfall. Getting up, he started running back to the cliff, then came to a stop as a bright light consumed the vision in his left eye and he fell back from the pain it caused him, even as he wasn't consciously using its powers. "ARGH!"

Keeping it closed and placing both hands over it, Sora looked back in the direction the light had come from, seeing nothing with his natural eye, but still seeing some light from his left eye somehow. Cautiously, he walked forward, worried about what might be causing this blinding light that only his magic eye could see. After a few minutes, the light began to fade from the view of his left eye and he slowly exposed it as he continued to run.

When he reemerged from the tree line, he saw both Lucy and Loke on their knees and staring out over the chasm and into the now orange sky.

Lucy then turned to Loke with a smile on her face. "There you have it!" She said softly, getting Loke to look right at the grave, a look of hope on his face as tears flowed freely from his eyes.

Sora blinked at this and remained quiet, not knowing what was going on. Lucy then stood up, followed by Loke as he looked at her with a genuine smile and held a hand out to her. "Lucy…"

"Yeah." Lucy wasted no time grabbing it, looking him right in the eye.

"Thank you… Lucy…" Loke then faded away, looking happier than Sora had ever seen him, and Lucy shortly looked at a small object in the hand she gave him with a smile.

"... What… just…?" Sora tried to form words at what he just witnessed, getting Lucy to finally look at him.

"Oh, Sora! You're back."

"Of course I'm back! Something huge was happening over here, but it nearly blinded my MAGIC eye with how much power there was. What about Loke? Is he…"

In response, Lucy smiled softly and opened her hand.

Sora then looked in her hand, and nearly gasped at what was there. "Is… Is that…?"

"The Key of the Lion, Leo. Loke's key."

He then looked at her in hope. "So, he's…"

Lucy nodded. "He's back home, in the Celestial World. Alive."

Sora just stared dumbly at it for several seconds, before looking back at Lucy. "Okay, I need answers."

* * *

"A Celestial Spirit?!" "You are?!"

The cries from Natsu and Happy were currently prominent as Sora drank some lemonade at the bar the next day. He was sitting next to Lucy as Loke, now rejuvenated a little after a night in the Celestial World, stood nearby and chatted with Natsu, Happy, and Gray.

"Yep, that's right!" He responded to the questions from the dragon and cat.

"I had no idea at all…" Gray said.

Natsu looked at him curiously. "But how come you're not a cow or a horse or something?"

"You know Virgo. She does have a human form too." Loke replied.

"No, she can turn into a gorilla too."

Sora did a spit-take at Natsu's words, before turning to Lucy. "She can what now?

"Ah, long story." Lucy replied, before interjecting into the boy's conversation. "Loke is a Lion Spirit." Those words put faces of shock on Natsu and Happy as the latter flew up to Natsu's shoulders.

"Lion?!" "A grown-up cat?!" Sora face-planted on the counter at Happy's assumption, and didn't even sit up when he heard Loke's next words.

"That's right!" Loke said playfully to Happy.

"No it isn't!" Lucy shouted.

Happy was now drooling on Loke's shoulder as he thought but how cool Loke is for being a lion, when Gray spoke up. "But are you in good enough shape to be here?"

"I'm not in tip-top shape yet, but I wanted to come say hello. Plus, I couldn't wait to see Lucy again." Lucy blushed at those words, getting Sora to smile playfully at her.

"Oh? Is Mira's assumption from the other day true after all?" Sora teased the Celestial Mage.

"Enough of that!" She shouted at him. She then calmed down as she stared at him. "Still, why didn't you tell us that you knew he was dying, let alone a banished spirit? We might have been able to sort this out sooner if you had at least told me."

Sora shrugged as the rest looked to him. "Wasn't my place. When I made those rings for Loke some years back, he made me swear not to talk to anyone about him until after the 3 years I promised him had passed. I didn't expect to see him again, but I assumed that after that time he would either find a solution, or he wouldn't need one. Still…" He then raised his glass to the reinstated leader of the zodiac. "Glad I don't need to attend any funerals, you insufferable bastard."

Loke grinned at him. "Oh hey, that reminds me. Whatever happened to that crystal Happy showed you back when we ran into these guys?"

Lucy, Natsu, Happy, and Gray each thought about what he was talking about, then realized that they never got the crystal back from Sora before he walked off. "Ah!" They all then turned to the crystal mage doing another spit-take.

As he recovered, Sora then realized the 'threat' he gave Loke to keep him quiet would no longer apply, then said the one thing he thought would be most logical. "… Well, shit…" He then turned back to the bar and continued to drink his lemonade, completely avoiding the accusing looks from the others.

"Hahaha! Think of that as revenge for some of the things you put me through. Anyway," Faster than she could process it, Lucy was in Loke's arms in a princess carry and tried to get out of it as he walked towards the entrance. "Let us discuss our future together Lucy!"

"Hey! Let me down!"

"She's so lucky." Natsu said. "I want a Celestial Spirit too!"

"What kind?" Happy asked.

"A dragon of course! I could try my Dragon Slayer magic against it!"

"You don't call Celestial Spirits to test your strength on them!" Lucy chastised.

"You're right." Loke said, as he and Lucy were now standing with his arm draped around her shoulder. "They're for talking about love-"

"You should go now." Lucy interrupted before bringing his key up. "You're not in full health right now, remember?"

"Just a minute." Loke then rummaged through his coat pocket for a moment, before pulling out some tickets and presenting them. "Here you go."

"What are these?" Lucy asked as she took them, Sora looking over in curiosity as the boys did the same.

"Tickets to a resort hotel. You did so much for me, so…"

Everyone had their own reaction of shock and awe, Sora looking interested himself having not had the time to do such a thing before meeting the Fairies. "5 Tickets huh? Nice!"

"I already gave a ticket to Erza as well. Go enjoy yourselves. Especially you Sora." Loke smiled at Sora after they had divided the tickets among themselves. "With everything you've done recently, and everything you've done for yourself before joining this guild, it's about time you laid back and relaxed. Have some fun for a change."

Sora looked back at the ticket in his hand with a smile. "Well, I am done with the logistics. I suppose Mira and Master can take care of things from here."

"All of you! What are you loitering around for?!" They all stopped their own celebrations as they turned at the sound of Erza's voice, seeing her with her usual cart of luggage. Except this time there was beach stuff tied on top and herself dressed for the beach. "Do you _want_ to be left behind?!"

"TALK ABOUT FAST!" Lucy and Gray exclaimed, while Sora tried to imagine why Erza couldn't use that dimensional storage of hers to hold onto all of that stuff instead of putting it all on the cart of food that Sora had confirmed for himself really was food.

"All right! Let's go!" Natsu cheered. "I'm ready to go right now!"

"Same here!" Happy agreed.

"You idiots, I need to pack first!" Gray scolded.

"While that may be true," They all turn to Sora as he pulled out a small bag and giving it a shake, hearing a slight jostling from it that was similar to a pile of pebbles. "Whatever we leave behind accidently, I can probably afford to replace it when we get there."

While they enjoyed some light planning with some excited chatter, Lucy and Loke stood off to the side, the latter getting the former's attention. "Lucy."

As Lucy gave her attention to Loke, he gave her a genuine and warm smile. "The fact that I've committed a crime hasn't changed, but you've given me the courage to move forward. I am a member of Fairy Tail, but I'm _your_ Celestial spirit, first and foremost. You're my owner. I'll be there whenever you're in trouble. You can rely on me to be your knight in shining armor."

"I'm not your owner." She then gave him a thumbs up as she winked at him. "I'm your friend!"

Loke looked at her in surprise for a moment, before he gave anther bright smile. "Yeah! I'm glad to be working with you, Lucy!" With that, he faded back to the celestial world.

"I'm glad to be working with you too, Loke!" She looked at his key in her hand as she spoke, knowing that he heard her.

Erza then walked up from behind. "Lucy, we're about to leave."

"You know, Erza. If…" Erza looked at her questioningly as she spoke. "If I ever caused one of us to get hurt or lose their life, I think I would suffer as Loke did too." She was looking up into the sky as she spoke. "But, there's nothing to worry about, is there?" As she talked, the others gathered around, Sora hanging on to every word with a smile. "If we all work together, we can overcome any tough situation, can't we?"

"That's well said." Erza stated.

"Right!" Lucy said as she turned back to them. Then Sora caught her eye and she grinned guiltily. "I guess that's another reason you kept quiet about Loke, isn't it?"

Sora nodded at that. "Both of us caused something bad to happen to someone, even if indirectly. I empathized, so I honored his wishes. But enough of all this depression talk!" Sora grinned widely before making a board of crystal in his hands. "Surf's up guys! It's vacation time!"

"Alright!" Natsu agreed. "Let's go already!"

"Aye Sir!" Happy said in his usual line.

"We're gonna have so much fun a day or two won't be enough!" Gray exclaimed.

"Alright." Erza said calmly. "It _was_ kind of Loke to do this. Let's have lots of fun!"

"Aye sir!" Everyone said at once, all feeling the same cheer as Happy usually does before making their way to the trains.

"By the way, Sora. I couldn't help but overhear something about you and a crystal a certain cat of ours had found." She then fixed him with a stern yet amused look that sent shivers down Sora's spine. "Care to explain yourself?"

Sora froze on the spot, before dropping the board and hopping on, propelling himself away from the guild's disciplinarian. "DAMNIT, LOKE! I'M GONNA KILL YOU MYSELF NEXT TIME I SEE YOU!"

* * *

A/N: And with that, we're finally about to start the Tower of Heaven Arc! When I first decided to make it so Sora could identify magic with his eye, I found it hard to argue that he could recognize Spirits with it as well. That said, he must be consciously using the eye's powers to see and identify so it isn't going to be constantly active. He can't just look at magic normally and immediately tell what it is at all times. And this is less of a new power than one he's had since the beginning of the story, so please no complaints about a new power again.

Anyway, enough about that. The next arc is something I had some fun plans for, and hope you all enjoy what I intend for it. Hope to see you all leaving some reviews telling me what you liked and what you didn't like about this story so far, so I can then work on improving the quality of this.

And to anyone reading my other story, "Taking Flight" for Yugioh ArcV, I'm sorry for how long it's been since the last update, been having trouble coming up with the next chapter and it was easier to try and work on this story whenever I hit another roadblock in plot and dialogue. I will try to get that done and out as soon as I can.

And with that, see you all next time.


	9. Messengers of Heaven

A/N: Hey guys, sorry for any delays. Was trying to work on the next chapter for my other story which hadn't been updated in a while. That said, I hope you all like how things go in this chapter as we finally start the Tower of Heaven arc.

Review Responses

 **pokeheroaadyn** : Good to know. Feel free to let me know if you have any questions or thoughts about my work.

 **Adrian:** Thanks for the compliment, and don't worry if you're busy.

 **Zoofan:** I have approximately 8 more chapters planned out after this one, so don't worry about me not writing this story. Hope you like this latest update!

* * *

Akane Resort was the most popular tourist spot in the kingdom of Fiore. The large resort area consisted of a giant amusement park, a 5-star hotel, and a huge white sandy beach adjacent to the sea. The hotel itself also held a casino in the basement so visitors could enjoy themselves more fully.

The Fairy Tail mages had arrived a couple of days ago, and so far each of them were having a blast! Currently, Gray and Erza were passing a beach ball between each other while Happy danced around on the hot sand. Out in the water, a large fish was harnessed to a watercraft, Lucy holding the reins as she hollered in joy. Natsu however was on the back of the board, holding onto it with an iron grip and looking like he was about to hurl any second.

"I-I want off…" Natsu managed to say through a very queasy expression.

Lucy looked back at him with a smile. "But you're the one who wanted to ride it!"

"WhooooHOOOOO!" A loud holler got her attention then, and she looked to the side to see Sora on his Board riding up next to them. Unlike the others, his swimwear was apparently a dark wetsuit, stating that it would be easier to enjoy the beach if people weren't constantly looking at the 'hunk of shiny rock in his chest'. He then pulled up to their side with a wide grin. "Yo! How fast can that thing go?! Bet I'm faster!"

Lucy blinked once, before returning his grin. "We'll see about that! Hya!" She then used the reins to urge the fish pulling her forward to go even faster, Sora cheering loudly as he made his board propel faster as well, both not noticing how bad Natsu was getting from that.

After they eventually returned to shore, they all engaged in a series of activities. They played volleyball, they ran along the beach (or fly in Happy's case), and they even buried Gray and Sora and molded the sand around them to give them "beach babe" bodies. Sora laughed it off while Gray began to look flustered, not having agreed to that part earlier. Once they were let out of the sand, Sora used his board to pull everyone on a water raft to relax in the water (and Sora having provided a few Citrine bands to help Natsu power through his motion sickness to actually enjoy it). And when they got back to shore Natsu managed to steal Gray's trunks from him, the Ice mage being forced to use Happy to hide himself much to the cat's terror and Sora's amusement.

After spending the day at the beach of the Akane Resort, Sora was now in his room getting dressed to have some fun in the Casino. "Alright! Time to make back the money I spent helping renovate the guild!" He was now wearing a nice black dress suit, with matching shoes and crystal cuff-links he made himself.

Walking out of the room he had, he saw Lucy walking by in a red dress. When she saw him, she looked at him grumpily. "Oh, Sora."

Sora laughed a bit at the look on her face. "Hey now, you aren't still upset about me winning that race are you?"

"You used your magic while I was just getting pulled around by a giant fish!"

"Haha! Hey, in my defense that fish was pretty big and I was too impatient to get one of my own. And besides, you agreed to the race."

Lucy grumbled in annoyance at how he was right, before she walked a little further down the hall. "Anyway, I was just checking to make sure you and Erza were ready. Everyone else already went down to the game floor. We're gonna play lots and lots of games!"

Sora nodded with a grin. "Then what are you waiting for?! Go get her! I'll see you both down there." Sora then walked out while Lucy went the other way to where Erza's room was.

* * *

Keeping true to what he told himself, he spent a bit of time in the high stakes area and managed to leave it with more money than he went in with, surprising himself with his own luck. He had told himself that he wouldn't use his eye to keep things fair (and to not risk anyone looking for that sort of thing) and still managed to somehow make back some of the money he spent helping restore the guild. Sora then spent a good while simply enjoying himself down in the casino's more casual areas, and after playing casually in a few games he came across something with a prize that both shocked and excited him. That said, it was apparently one of the tougher games in the casino, so despite the dozen times he tried, he still couldn't get the grand prize. Afterwards, he decided to leave and return later, seeing as they still had several days left.

"Man, that's a tricky game. Now to see how the rest are doing…" Looking around, he saw a familiar pair of red and blonde hair and made his way over to the card table and the crowd forming around it.

"A straight! Way to go Erza!" Lucy cried out in amazement as Erza won yet another round.

Erza put on a confident look with a hand on her chin. "Hm. Today seems to be my lucky day."

"Not just yours." The girls looked back at Sora as he walked up next to them. "Aside from one troublesome game here, which I almost think is rigged, I seem to be doing pretty well myself! Hey Lucy, mind letting me take a seat?" Doing so, Sora looked at the new dealer that had taken over. "Mind dealing me in pal? I think someone needs to stop her winning streak."

Erza smirked at him. "Good luck with that. I feel like my winning streak is invincible right now."

"Yeah!" Lucy cheered for her. "Take him down Erza!"

Sora smirked back. "Keep that up while you can. Fortune tends to shine on me from time to time."

The new dealer began shuffling the cards like a pro. "In that case… How about we play a special game then?" As he spoke, he threw down 5 cards that landed in a row in front of the Fairy mages.

Giving the dealer a look of confusion, the three then looked at the cards in front of them, eyes widening in shock at the word that had formed in front of them.

 **D. E. A. T. H.**

"Let's play a game where you're very life is on the line…" The three of them then got a good look at the dealer, olive-colored skin with shaggy blond hair with a small tattoo on the side of his chin. "Erza nee-san…"

"You're…" Erza looked at him in shock and recognition. "Sho… Is that you Sho?!"

"Been a long time, Nee-san."

Erza just stared at him, frozen in fear as Sora and Lucy looked at Erza in concern. "Nee-san?"

"You're… Safe?" She muttered, making Sora narrow his eyes at the now named Sho, who was beginning to look at her sadistically.

"Safe?"

"Oh… I mean…"

Erza was shaking at this point, barely able to say a word as the impossible looked her in the eye, increasing Lucy's worry. "Erza?"

Right at that moment, all the light disappeared, leaving all three in darkness. As they stood up, trying to see what had happened, they then heard a loud and recognizable sound!

"Was that a gunshot?!"

"What's going on?!"

"Don't ask me! I can't see anything, even with my eye!"

Then, just as quickly as the lights went out, they came back on, the three of them covering their eyes as they took a moment to adjust to the change in lighting. Erza immediately looked over to where her old friend was, but saw nothing. "Sho!"

"Huh?" Lucy looked around the table in confusion. "Where did he go?!"

"Forget him…" Sora looked at the entire table, noting a lack of something that was there before. "What happened to all the civilians?!"

"Over here, Nee-san." They all rounded to see Sho now standing behind them, scattering cards from his hand onto the ground, cries and screams coming from the cards as they saw the people from the casino trapped inside.

"W-what the…" "The people are inside the cards?!"

As Erza and Lucy looked at the cards in shock, Sora stared at Sho angrily. "So that makes him a mage then?"

Sho looked right at Erza as he held a card with yet another civilian inside as they cried out for help. "Are you curious?"

"You can use magic…"

"Correct. I can use magic now too, Nee-san."

"Just what have you…"

"Nyaaaa!"

At the feline sound, magic circles formed under Lucy and Sora, before an orange rope shot up and wrapped around them tightly, binding them with Lucy's arms above her head while Sora's were pulled to his side! The two bound mages looked at their predicament in shock as they tried to pry the bindings off.

"Lucy! Sora!" Erza looked at the both of them in worry as she then took notice of the girl now sitting on the poker table behind them. She wore a yellow jacket over a pink blouse with cat-like ears made from her brown hair, matching her feline looking face.

"Feelin' spiffy?" The girl said without a care in the world.

"Millianna?! You can use magic too?!"

"Long time no see, Er-chan!"

Sora cracked an eye open through the discomfort. "I take it you know her too, Erza?"

"Let them go! They're my friends!" Erza pleaded.

"Friends?" Millianna said childishly.

"We used to be your friends too remember, Nee-san?" Sho said, a cruel smile on his face.

Erza held her arm as she looked at him sadly. "Y-yeah…"

"Right?" His eye then gained a dark look in them. "Until you betrayed us, anyway…"

Sora's eyes widened along with Lucy's as they heard that. 'What the hell?! There's no way Erza would ever betray anyone!' Sora thought with confidence, yet also slight worry. 'Just who the hell are these guys?!'

"Don't be so hard on her Sho." The three of them watched in shock as a man began to form next to Sho, appearing block by block and making Sora have a double-take as a man with a very… blocky, appearance showed up in a suit with an arm around Sho's shoulder. "A dandy man must keep his emotions in check, you know?"

"Blocky!" Lucy cried out in shock, as surprised as Sora that anyone could have such an appearance.

The block-man then looked right at Erza through the sunglasses he had on. "Been a long time. You've gone and grown to be quite the lady."

"Is that you, Wally…?"

He reached up for his hat at his name. "I don't blame you for not recognizing me. Compared to the Mad Dog Wally you once knew… I'm a much more well-rounded person now..."

Lucy looked at him in shock as she let out a sound of disbelief, while Sora deadpanned at him. "… Please tell me you mean that metaphorically…"

"So you can use magic too?" Erza said, looking at Wally.

"It's nothing to be surprised about." At the new voice, Erza froze and Sora and Lucy watched in shock as darkness gathered behind Erza before dispersing, revealing a large man with a bare chest, a sash going across it and holding some cloth over his left shoulder. Sora however was more interested in the turban on his head, the eyepatch covering his left eye, and the metal plate hiding his jaw and chin. "Anyone can use magic, once they've figured out the trick. Isn't that right, Erza?"

Erza then stepped away and turned to the latest figure. "Simon!"

Millianna decided right then to push Sora and Lucy onto the ground, leaving them helpless in their bindings as they fell over, eliciting a grunt from Sora and a cry from Lucy. Sora then turned his head as much as he could to look right at the cat-girl. "Oi, watch it! You better hope I don't get out of these!"

Lucy meanwhile turned her attention to the redhead. "Erza! Who are these guys?! What is this "Nee-chan" stuff all about?!"

Erza looked away sadly before responding. "I'm not really their sister. These are… my old friends."

"Your friends…? But I thought you were a member of Fairy Tail since you were little?"

"This was before then."

Sora looked at the 'old friends' in in anger. "No offense Erza, but your so called "friends" could use a SERIOUS attitude adjustment."

"Very true. They were never like this! Why are you here?!"

"What do you mean why?" Millianna said in the same manner as earlier.

Wally adjusted the fedora on his head. "We're here to take you back, of course."

"Let Lucy and Sora go!" Erza demanded.

"Never mind them." Sho said, completely focused on her. "Let's go home, Nee-san."

Wally then aimed a finger each at Lucy and Sora. "Better do as we say, or…" both of his arms then glowed and pixelated, turning them into a pair of blocky guns, each pointing at their heads and confirming aim with a red targeting laser getting Sora to glare as Lucy quivered in fear.

Erza turned back at her old friends. "N-No! Please!" One of the guns then flashed away, and began to materialize behind her. "Stop!" Before Sora or Lucy could warn her, the gun fired and Erza began to fall forward, and into the arms of Simon.

The captive mages on the ground watched in shock at what had happened, Lucy calling out the name of her friend. "Erza! Erza!"

The rest of the group looked either at the trapped mages or the unconscious Erza. "Target acquired." Simon stated. "Let's head back."

"You sure you did it right?" Sho asked the block man.

"It was a tranquilizer shot, ya know?" He lifted the gun that was once again attached to his arm for emphasis.

"Hold on! Where are you taking Erza?! Give her back!" Lucy said as she tried to break out of the rope. "Natsu and Gray are SO gonna kick your butts when they catch you!"

"And if they don't, I'll be sure to do so!" Sora said, as he stared at them in calm anger.

"Unfortunately for those two, it was THEIR butts who were kicked, ya know?" Wally said condescendingly.

"Huh?!" Lucy looked at them in shock, while Sora put together the pieces from looking at Wally's magic gun.

"That shot from earlier. It came from you then?"

"Indeed. We destroyed them before the fight could even begin, ya know?"

"They were nothing but talk." Simon stated as if he were talking about the weather.

"Wh-What? Then they're both…?!"

Sora snarled at them. "I bet you hit them with a few cheap shots before they even registered the threat. If you hadn't hit them when they were off guard, then there's no way you could possibly have gotten away without a few bruises or burns!"

"I'd keep quiet if I were you, nya!" Millianna then pointed at them, their bonds getting even tighter. Looking at Lucy, "5 more minutes until your body is completely bent backwards…" she then looked at Sora. "And yours is squeezed until you pop like a cherry!"

As the two let out sounds of distress and pain, Wally walked up to the cat-girl. "That reminds me Millianna. I have a present for you."

"Nya?" Wally then held his hands up, and pixels formed in his hands, revealing a sleeping Happy! "NYA! Kitty kitty!" She then took Happy and stated tossing him into the air and hugging him in happiness. "I can really have this?!"

"H-Happy!" Lucy and Sora looked at them as they gathered up.

"Millia." Simon called out to her. "Tie Erza up." The girl was too distracted from playing to pay attention, so he tried again. "Millianna. Would you please?" That snapped her out of it long enough to place some bindings on Erza's arms and feet.

As they started walking, Sho stopped and spoke. "Nee-san…" He then turned and showed that he had tears forming in his eyes. "You're finally coming home… to the Tower of Heaven! I'm sure Jellal will be ecstatic too!"

The group then walked away a bit, Lucy calling out. "Erza!" The group then stopped, and a magic circle formed above them. "Erza!" They then turned into light and were absorbed by the circle. "Erza…" She then began to frantically try and escape her bindings. "ARGH! If only I could reach my gate keys, then I could get us out of here!"

"Not likely." Lucy stopped and looked at the now eerily calm Sora. "I already tried using magic to break out while they were talking. I can't perform any magic with these bindings on. I don't think you'll be able to do any better with your gate keys."

"What?! Then what are we supposed to do?!"

Sora then grinned at her. "Well, first I do this." Sora's body then flashed, before he became a figure of crystal that abruptly shattered, much to Lucy's shock.

"SORA!"

"Yeah?"

"Huh?" Lucy then looked to the side to see Sora pulling himself up and over the table, perfectly fine. "What?! B-But how?!"

As soon as he was by her side, he fashioned a knife and began to carefully cut through the cords. "As soon as we saw that Sho guy, I was preparing my magic for whatever happened. When the light went out, I used the opportunity to combine my Crystal Fake with the invisibility of my Citrine Heart, letting me hide behind the poker table when the lights came back on. No one was the wiser as I let a puppet take my place while I observed everything through him. I'm just glad those bindings didn't dispel the clone completely, or even reveal that it was a clone. Guess these cords only prevent the use of magic, not dispel their effects."

After a few more moments, Lucy was freed. As she relaxed her strained muscles and bones, she looked at him. "Then why didn't you try and stop them from taking Erza?!"

"Lucy, it would have been 4 against 1. Not only do I not know what they can do, but from what I've seen of them so far I don't want to challenge the entire group on my own. Besides, from how they were acting, I doubt they intend to kill Erza… At least not now. We have time to regroup with the others and figure out what to do next."

"Alright." Lucy then looked at the cards gathered on the ground. "What should we do about all these people?"

Sora looked around and started gathering them up. "I'll put them on the table for now. Neither of us know anything about this kind of magic, so for now we'll just have to leave them somewhere they can be attended to later."

"Okay, let me help really quick, then we can go find Natsu and Gray." After a minute of gathering people and laying them on the poker table, promising to send someone to help them, they ran off to the main game floor.

They quickly found Gray in front of a broken down bar. "Gray…! Oh no!" Lucy ran up to him as Sora looked him over with his eye, checking to see if anything was broken, but was surprised to find something else. "Hey! Say something!"

"Uh, Lucy?" Sora tried to say, before she placed a hand on Gray to check on him.

"Ah, he's cold…" She then tried to shake him awake, before he flashed into an ice sculpture, freaking Lucy out. It certainly didn't help when the sculpture then shattered.

Lucy cried out in fear thinking she just killed Gray, frantically trying to fix him, while Sora simply looked around and found what he was looking for with something extra. "Oh? I didn't expect to see you here."

Lucy stopped freaking out for a moment and looked where Sora was, seeing water form together and rising. "You may rest easy." A familiar voice spoke up, as the water eventually took shape, revealing a certain water mage.

Lucy stood up and reached for her keys. "You're that girl from the Element 4!"

Sora then held a hand in front of her, surprising her. "Relax Lucy. Look more closely."

"Huh?" Lucy then looked back at Juvia, seeing Gray revealed from underneath her.

"Thanks Sora. Wouldn't be good to start a fight right now, especially since she isn't our enemy anymore."

"That's right. Gray-sama was being protected inside Juvia." The water mage said.

"I-Inside…?" Lucy looked nervous from the way it was said.

Juvia seemed to interpret that differently than she was supposed to, as she then got up in Lucy's face with something of a victorious look. "He was inside Juvia, _not_ you."

Lucy sweat-dropped at how things were going. "Y-Yeah… That's true…"

Meanwhile, Sora was making sure Gray was good. "Hey man, what happened?"

"After everything went dark," Gray was already getting out of the suit he was wearing, currently taking off the tie. "I took a page out of your book and made a double so I could check out what was going on, but then…"

"Juvia protected Gray-sama by using the Water Lock spell to keep the enemy from finding out." Juvia interjected.

"I didn't need your help." He said, now taking the shirt off. "He got away because of you!" Juvia was struck by shock at those words, as Gray then turned to Lucy and Sora. "Hey guys, where are Natsu and the others?"

Lucy and Sora shared a look. "We're not too sure about where Natsu is…" Lucy began.

"But that group made off with Erza and Happy, the former because they were apparently old friends and the latter because one of them seems to love cats." Sora finished.

Gray was about to respond, when a torrent of flames shot up from a small distance away, accompanied by a war cry.

"… Ah, there's Natsu." Soar said with a smirk before the four of them rushed to the source of the flames.

When they got to him, he was coughing something fierce as smoke trailed out of his mouth. "Gagh! Wh-What a jerk!" When the others called his name, he looked over at them.

"What happened?" Gray asked as they came to a stop at him.

"Who shoots people in the mouth?!" Natsu cried out. "That hurts! It could really injure someone!"

The others deadpanned at that, and Sora turned to the other Fairies as he pointed at Natsu. "Are you guys CERTAIN that he is actually HUMAN. Because that would leave any other human down for the count…"

"That blocky bastard!" Natsu cried out. "You're not getting away from me!" Natsu then ran out of the building as he roared.

"Let's follow him!" Gray said.

"But how? He doesn't know where he's going…"

"Lucy, surely you remember." Lucy looked at Sora's amused expression. "How did he find me when I was invisible?"

"That's right. Wild beasts have nothing on _his_ sense of smell!" Gray affirmed, before they all followed the team's bloodhound. But before they left, Sora stopped and took a quick glance at something, and after a brief moment of thought went up to it.

* * *

After some time, they had found a boat and were out over the water, Natsu trying not to hurl while wearing a collar Sora made from Citrine that should help stave off the worst of his motion-sickness, at least for a while. While Natsu told Lucy and Gray where to steer, Juvia sat at the front of the boat while Sora sat in the back, now out of the suit and instead wearing swim trunks and a shirt, sweating slightly and working to make sure the collar didn't ease up and that the propulsion lacrimas were working at maximum efficiently.

"Hey, do you guys think the people trapped in the cards are alright?" Lucy asked after a while. At this point in time, the sun was high in the sky.

"We did let the military know before we left, so they're probably fine by now." Gray assured.

"I hope so."

"Not much we can do about it now anyway." Sora said, looking back in the direction they had come from. "We're way too far from the resort to go back now, and even if we did, we don't have the knowledge needed to help them."

"I suppose so…" Lucy then took a look at Sora. "Hey, when do you plan on telling us why you took so long to get to the docks? You were a little pale when you did make it too."

"Later. We have other things to focus on right now." Sora kept his gaze on the collar around Natsu's neck as his crystal eye gave a slight glow.

"Where are we anyway?!" Gray said impatiently as he looked around, seeing nothing but the water and the gulls.

"Have Juvia and her companions become lost?" She asked herself in worry.

Lucy turned to the resident Dragon Slayer. "Are you sure this is the right way, Natsu?"

He looked at her, his forehead dotted with sweat and a pale look to his skin. "Yeah. My stomach may be trying to kill me right now, but Sora's crystals are helping me keep my head. We're definitely headed the right way."

"But damn…" Gray looked back over the water. "I can't believe we let them knock us out and snatch Erza and Happy… Talk about pathetic!"

"Yeah, for once I agree with you." Natsu said, holding himself together as best he could.

"It's hard to believe someone of Erza's level was defeated…" Juvia said worriedly.

"She wasn't." Sora said firmly, getting Juvia to look at him. "She wasn't defeated. She never even tried to fight against them, and they used a tranquilizer on her the first chance they got by using me and Lucy as hostages. If she didn't know them personally, and if we weren't stuck in the position we were in, they would have had a much harder time trying to take her."

"Exactly." Gray said in response, having been irked by her words. "So don't act like you know anything about Erza!"

Juvia looked down regretfully. "I-I'm sorry…!"

"Gray! Calm down!" Lucy reprimanded. Gray looked away and clicked his tongue. Lucy then turned her gaze to the magic engine she was powering. "Like Sora said, they called themselves old friends of Erza, and she even confirmed it. We really don't know much about Erza ourselves…"

Each of the Fairies thought about that for a few moments, before Natsu perked up and stood up straight. "What the…?! What is this ominous feeling?!" Everyone else took a moment to try and feel what he was talking about, before they saw some of the birds in the air near them begin to plummet for no reason!

Lucy covered her mouth in horror at the sight. "The birds!"

"What in the world…?" Gray watched, unable to look away as he tried to make sense of it. They then hit something and they looked back at the water, Lucy letting out a yelp at the debris and dead fish in the area. "The fish too?!"

"Something's wrong here." Juvia said, feeling how wrong the water was from her magic.

Sora focused his eye to try and see anything that might help them figure this out. "… I think I see traces of dark magic here. Not enough to be able to affect humans, but it permeates in the area enough that the miasma is killing the wildlife in the vicinity."

As everyone digested that bit of information, Gray then noticed an emblem on some of the wreckage. "This debris… It's a Fiore Military ship!"

"I got a bad feeling about this…" Lucy said in worry.

"Good." Sora said, a serious look on his face as he took over both propulsion Lacrimas and sped up their progress. "It probably means we're headed in the right direction. Bad feelings are typically accompanied by bad guys."

Natsu then looked at the way they were going, and got the attention of the others. "Oi. Over there…"

They then looked where he was and saw a towering structure that looked like something that came from hell itself, pitch black with a spherical portion that was up at the level of the clouds.

"Th-That's… the Tower of Heaven?!" Lucy said nervously.

"Doesn't look very heavenly…" Sora commented, as Juvia raised her arm above the boat, a magic circle forming above her hand.

"Water Dome!" At her words, water gathered from the sea and covered them, effectively hiding the boat. "We can make landfall using this as camouflage."

"W-Wow!" Lucy looked about the dome in awe as the others did the same.

"Nice work Juvia!" Sora said. "I am very glad to have you on our side right now, or we would probably wind up like that military ship back there."

Natsu took a seat again, reaching a hand to touch the crystal on his neck. "Urgh, if it weren't for this band, I'd probably be on the ground by now."

"Don't think about that. Instead, think about being ready to track the scents of Erza and Happy to wherever these bastards are keeping them." Sora said, focusing his attention solely on the propulsion lacrima.

After some time, they made it to a wooden dock and began to quietly make their way further inland and to the tower. Sora was now using his eye to scout out the sentries and looking for points of entry. "… Man, they really have this place well-guarded. There aren't any weaknesses at all in their security. Even if I were on my own I would still have a hard time getting in there." He then looked at the others. "And this is coming from someone who has years of experience in breaking into places quietly and somewhat easily."

"Can't we just charge them?!" Natsu asked impatiently.

"No!" Lucy reprimanded. "They have Erza and Happy! We'll only put them in danger if we're not careful!"

"Not only that, but I see some interesting countermeasures around the tower." Sora said, sweeping his gaze around what he could see with his eye. "If we get their attention before we manage to get into the tower, we won't be getting in at all."

"Man, the odds are really against us today…" Gray said in annoyance.

Juvia's head then popped up from the water next to them. "Juvia has found an underwater entrance to the basement."

"Seriously?! Way to go!" Gray congratulated her.

That once again got Juvia in front of Lucy. "Juvia was praised! Not you!"

"Yes, yes…" Lucy tried not to look at her from the look on her face, Lucy's own face having a nervous look on it.

All of a sudden, Juvia felt a sharp impact on her forehead, causing her to yelp and backup, hands on her forehead as she looked at where it came from. Sora then lowered the hand he used to flick her forehead and looked at her seriously. "Juvia, we need you to focus. Friends of ours' are in danger, so please try to stay focused on getting us inside and helping us rescue them. Got it?"

Juvia blinked owlishly, before sheepishly nodding her head. She then cleared her throat before addressing them. "The entrance is about a 10-minute swim underwater…"

"Oh, piece of cake." "Yeah." Natsu and Gray were unfazed by the time it would take, thinking they could hold their breath that long.

Lucy however, quickly reminded them of the truth. "That's clearly impossible!"

Sora looked at Juvia questioningly. "I know you would be fine and I can breathe water for a small period, but what about them?"

"In that case, put these on." Juvia then raised one of her hands, and a bubble of water appeared above it. "There is oxygen inside, so you can breathe underwater with them."

"Oh!" Gray and the rest looked impressed, Natsu even more so.

"Man, you're awesome! Who are you anyway?" Juvia paled a little with a look of shock at how Natsu didn't know who she was.

Sora just placed a hand on his shoulder. "Just forget about it. She's a friend right now, and that's all that matters." Sora then looked over at her. "I'll be using one of those bubbles as well please. My thing for going underwater isn't really something I can do normally and this would help save my energy."

Juvia nodded, and minutes later they were all under the surface of the water, following Juvia to the entrance. After they made it in, they soon emerged from the water inside a large cavern, stone walkways spanning across and around the chamber.

Natsu had already removed his bubble and the others were doing the same. Looking around, Natsu searched for any threats. "So, now we're underneath that tower? Where are Erza and Happy?"

"I'm looking, I'm looking." Sora was already looking up, searching through every chamber his eye could show him. "There seems to be some obstructions so I can't get a complete layout, especially if I'm trying to avoid a headache. That said, I can now guarantee we are inside the tower at least. That takes care of the hard part."

Lucy held her bubble above her hand. "These sure are handy! Thought kinda silly looking."

Juvia turned her gaze right at Lucy, a gleam in her eyes. "I'm impressed you made it here. I made yours smaller than the rest."

Lucy's bubble then popped as her entire body seemed deadpan. "Oi now…"

"Ladies, play nice." Sora said as he kept searching. "This isn't really the time for-."

ROOOOOOAAAAR!

"… arguing… Son of a…"

The group then looked over at the source of the roar to see one of the soldiers in the air flying atop some sort of pink-skinned creature with a long neck, sharp teeth, and wings. "Intruders!"

"Oh no!" Lucy looked in shock at the soldier, and what flowed into the in the chamber with them. A large mass of soldiers soon filed into the chamber at the call of the airborne soldier. Each carried a weapon of some sort, most being spears. Several more soldiers flew in on similar pink creatures, while some of those on the ground led land-based versions of those very creatures on the walkways with them.

"Who the hell are you?!"

"Guess our only option now is to fight!" Gray said, looking at the small army in determination, Juvia quickly agreeing with him.

Sora cracked his knuckles before donning his usual greaves and gauntlets. "Juvia, thank you for getting us in the tower before they realized it. Now, we can just deal with these grunts easily." A large smirk then stretched across his face. "And that typically means a massive ass-kicking."

Natsu stared right at the guard that addressed them, his magic flaring around him. "Who the hell are we, you ask?! You don't know a superior opponent when you see one?!" Natsu quickly sent a burning -fist to the ground, causing an explosion that obscured the mages.

"What?!"

"We're Fairy Tail, you idiot!" At Natsu's declaration, the five mages leapt out of the smoke and descended on the army, Natsu unleashing his roar on the soldier and striking down a sizable number of enemies.

"Ouch!" "Ow!" "Hot!"

"Ice Make: Lance!" Gray sent a flurry of icy projectiles at another batch of soldiers, sending them everywhere and recoiling from the impacts and cold.

Lucy landed on one of the walkways, the soldiers on said path stopping with hearts in their eyes as they got an eyeful of the celestial mage. "Swimsuit!" "Thank you!"

Lucy then pulled out one of her keys. "Open, Gate of the Maiden! Virgo!"

The Maid spirit appeared from the dust cloud that formed from her entry. "You called, Princess?"

"A maid!" "Get out of here, swimsuit girl!"

The way everyone began fawning over Virgo and telling Lucy to beat it, made her feel pissed. So, she felt no remorse when she pointed at the soldiers and gave Virgo a very simple command. "Punish them."

"As you wish." Virgo's eyes seemed to glow red, before she charged through the soldiers in such a way that they were sent flying off the walkways, the spirit showing no mercy.

Sora watched the display with a small sweat drop as he recalled the first time he met the spirit. "I suddenly understand what she meant back then about 'no mercy'." Sora then returned his attention to the whimpering grunt he was currently holding by the head with a single hand, a good number of other grunts unconscious around him. "Guess I shouldn't be slacking off either!" He then pulled the grunt back, let his gauntlet surge with purple light, then threw him at another group of soldiers on the end of the walkway, the gauntlet going with them. When the grunt hit the group, the gauntlet burst with Sora cheering at the blast that scattered the whole group. "Strike!"

Down on the lowest level, more soldiers were struggling to take down Juvia, only for their weapons to go right through her water body.

"Damn! She's…!"

"Watch out! Blades don't work on her!"

"How about this then?!"

"Blast her!"

A group of soldiers then lined up and started firing magic guns at Juvia, the shots passing through harmlessly. The soldiers stepped back in fear of how she pretty much ignored the attacks. "What's with this girl?!"

"Drip, drip…" Juvia said, pulling her arm back. "Water Slicer!" Her attack struck the group from the side, sending them flying with ease.

The rampage of the five mages and spirit continued unimpeded by every effort the soldiers attempted, quickly bringing the fight to an end. Once the last of the soldiers had been taken out, the group reconvened. "That takes care of most of them." Juvia said.

"Seems like." Gray said, looking over all the people they took out.

"I hope this won't cause us more trouble." Lucy then covered her face in defeat. "Oh, who am I kidding."

"Do I need to be punished?" Virgo said asked a little too eagerly.

Natsu had the last of the conscious soldiers by the collar. "Where's Blocky?!"

Sora meanwhile was looking around the room trying to figure out where they should go now, when he noticed the stone head in one of the walls was opening its mouth. "Hey guys, we got something."

A mere moment later, a bridge of sorts extended out from it like a tongue, extending all the way to the level they were on. "Huh?" Natsu looked at the path in confusion, while Sora was already tracing its path with his eye.

"Is this a way of saying "Come on up"?" Gray asked no one in particular.

"It definitely leads somewhere, but I don't see any opposition on the way up. It seems to be our best way through." Sora said after a moment.

"Then what are we waiting for?!" Natsu shouted before running up the path with the rest hot on his heels.

* * *

A/N: And that's a wrap for now. I did rewrite parts of this multiple times before I was satisfied so I hope this lives up to the expectations people seem to be having for this. Please feel free to let me know what you think whether its good or bad, leave a review and a follow or fav if you haven't yet. Every little bit helps me get these out sooner.

See you all later.


	10. Revelations and Declarations

**A/N** : Alright, time for a new chapter! To be honest, I had this chapter more or less ready for a while but some stuff in my life kept making me put off posting it. This will likely continue for some time for both this and my other story, but I still have every intention of finishing them no matter how long it takes me. With that, I hope you all enjoy what I had cooked up for all of you.

Review Responses

 **Zoofan** : Glad you like my story. I have every intention of writing more of this and no intentions about stopping.

 **pokeheroaadyn** : I hope not to disappoint… Well, at least not too much. As for Simon, we'll see. I'm now considering whether it should be Erza or Mira and am trying to finalize my decision on it. That said, should not change what I have in mind for the story in general so let's just see how things go for now. Hope you enjoy this.

* * *

"Blocky!"

"Keep it down!" Lucy whisper-yelled at him, trying to get him to watch his tone to keep from attracting attention.

"No point in sneaking around now after all that ruckus we caused down there." Gray reminded, a piece of meat still in his mouth as he and the other 3 humans ate from a table filled with food.

"What are you eating?!" Lucy demanded, trying to figure out how they went from looking for Erza and Happy, to eating a small feast of food.

Virgo then slid in and gestured to the table while addressing Lucy. "This appears to be a dining hall. You should eat too, Princess."

"Ah, man…" Lucy said in defeat.

Sora took a bite out of some bread before looking at her. "If it helps, I made sure nothing was poisoned or anything. It's all perfectly good."

"That doesn't make me feel better!" Lucy yelled.

Sora shrugged, while Juvia then looked back the way they came. "That door earlier was operated remotely with magic. It seems they're completely aware of our presence."

Lucy looked at her in worry. "Then, why would they…?"

"Are they trying to provoke us?" Gray wondered.

"Provoke us?"

"Incidentally, Princess," Lucy looked back at Virgo. "I believe it's inappropriate to dress that way in the dining area."

"Inappropriate?!" Lucy then covered herself in shock at the way Virgo said it, before Virgo raised her arms and gleamed at her.

"Let's change your clothes…" Virgo then began to rapidly approach her.

"What?! Right here?!" Before Lucy could say anything else, a wall of crystal formed around her and her spirit. "HUH?!"

"Sorry Lucy," Sora said as he turned back to the food. "But I'd rather not have Virgo threaten us in the middle of eating, and that should at least make you feel better."

Gray let out a sigh before looking back at the food as well. "Thanks Sora. That would have been hard not to look at." Gray didn't notice that Juvia had let out a grateful sigh, Sora stifling a chuckle as he thought about what she was thinking.

After some ruckus, Virgo announced that they were done and Sora dismissed the wall so they could see Lucy again. She now wore a dress with a primarily green motif, with a number of lighter colored designs on the bottom and a green clothe wrapped around the top of her head and trailing behind her. "This attire is from the Celestial Spirit World." Virgo explained.

Lucy giggled and posed as everyone gathered around to see. "What do you think? Yes, I know, it looks good on me!"

Sora raised a brow and smirked. "Humble, aren't we?" He then shrugged. "Still, it does look good."

"Wow, that's pretty cute!" Gray said in appreciation.

Juvia held her hands to her face in distraught that Gray complimented Lucy. "Juvia is mortified!"

"You're in loooooove!" Virgo said in her usual monotone, mimicking what Happy would usually say and getting Lucy, Gray, and Juvia to pale.

"Don't talk like that!" Lucy demanded.

"Where did you learn to imitate Happy like that?" Natsu asked the spirit, who promptly ignored him and addressed Lucy again.

"Princess, I pray for your success." She then bowed to her.

"Thank you, Virgo!" The spirit then flashed back to the Spirit world, and Lucy looked back at the others. "Honestly, I don't know how you guys can stand wearing wet cloths."

"This dries them quick." Gray said as he had a leg lifted in the air and pulling on the pant leg, Natsu standing by as fire whirled around him.

"A HUMAN DRYING MACHINE?!" Lucy shouted in shock.

Sora shrugged as he ran a red gauntlet across his clothes, the gauntlet releasing a gentle heat that quickly dried him. "The idea isn't wrong. And Juvia is fine cause, well, she is water." Juvia stood proudly at that, sneering a little at Lucy as she once again one-upped her… at least in her mind.

"There they are!" "The intruders!" A new batch of soldiers then ran into the room, Natsu, Juvia, and Sora each turning their gaze towards the others and preparing to attack them.

Only for a few sword slashes to send them flying, and Erza to be kneeling where they were once gathered, swords spread out before them and wearing her usual armor.

"Erza!" Natsu and Gray said in relief, while Lucy looked overjoyed at seeing her.

"You're alright!"

"S-So cool…" Juvia said in awe while Sora chuckled at her reaction.

"Yeah, she seems to have that effect."

Erza then looked at them in shock, finally realizing they were in the room. "Wh-Why are _you_ here?!"

"What do you mean "why" …?" Lucy had a look of confusion on her face.

Juvia began to fidget slightly. "Umm, Juvia is, uh…"

"Leave!" Erza shouted to them, Juvia stepping back nervously as Lucy looked shocked. "You don't belong in this place!"

A fist then ran into an open palm, flames spilling forth as Natsu looked at her angrily. "Don't give us that crap, Erza! Running away after being ridiculed will only tarnish Fairy Tail's name! That Blockhead _has_ to pay!"

"I'm telling you to leave." Erza said, quietly this time.

"But…" Lucy looked at her worriedly at this point.

"They took Happy!" Natsu shouted again. "We can't just leave now!"

"They have Happy?" Erza said in surprise. "Don't tell me it was Milliana…"

"Where is this person?!"

"I-I'm not sure."

"Alright! I got it!"

"Got what?" Gray asked apprehensively.

Like that, Natsu was running. "The fact that Happy is waiting for me!"

"H-Hey! Natsu…" Erza stared after the dust trail left behind by his run, already too late to stop him.

"That moron!" Gray spouted in annoyance.

"You expected anything less?" Sora said, a smirk on his face.

"Natsu…" Juvia looked like she was worried for him, while Lucy put on a look of determination.

"Let's go too!"

"No!" Erza barred their way, lifting her sword and keeping it ready, frightening the rest. She then spoke a bit more calmly. "Milliana is an incomparable cat lover. I can't imagine her harming Happy. I'll take responsibility for bringing them back. The rest of you need to get away from here at once." As she spoke, she had lowered her sword and turned to the door Natsu ran through.

"No."

Erza turned her stern gaze at Sora, a look of defiance on his face. "What was that?"

The others looked at Sora worriedly, whom only waited a moment before walking towards Erza, her sword going back up and held horizontally. Sora however paid it no mind, and everyone looked at him in shock when he finally stopped. Erza especially so, because he stopped only when the edge of her blade was touching his neck, a small amount of pressure all that that was needed to drawing blood. "No." He repeated. "We are not leaving without you as well."

Erza blinked, too shocked to even move her blade. "… Why…?"

Sora looked her right in the eye. "I was powerless before to help my family, and I vowed never to let something like that happen again. And according to Master Makarov, the guild is my family now. So tell me Erza; What the hell is going on, that you won't let your family help you?!"

Erza gulped, not moving or saying anything for a few seconds, before she lowered her sword and looked down at the ground. "This is _my_ problem. It has nothing to do with any of you. And I don't want you all to be dragged into problems from my past."

"I'd say it's a bit late for that." Gray spoke up, the rest of them calming down from the little confrontation that just happened. "You saw Natsu just now, and I think Sora summed things up pretty well for us."

"Erza," Lucy started, stepping towards her friend. "What is this tower? Who's Jellal?!" When she didn't respond immediately, Lucy brought her arms behind her back and looked down as well. "If you don't want to tell us, that's fine. They said they were your old friends, right? But we're your friends now."

Sora noticed Erza's lips quivering, as if she were trying not to say something and he motioned for Lucy to keep going. Seeing this, she got more confident and brought her fist up in enthusiasm, Gray mirroring her look. "We'll always have your back, no matter what!"

"There you have it." Gray said, while Juvia looked both embarrassed and impressed at Lucy's words.

"And there's no changing it." Sora said, not having moved from his spot, now seeing Erza shaking slightly.

There was silence for several minutes, before Erza spoke up, a hint of fear in her voice as she turned her back to them. "Leave…"

"Erza!" Lucy protested.

"This ain't like you, Erza." Gray said offhandedly. "Just tell us to shut up and come with you, like you always do. We'll lend you our strength!"

Sora placed a hand on her shoulder, getting her to freeze. "There's no shame in admitting your fears. Everyone feels it, no matter how hard they try to hide it. Even someone as strong as you. But!" Sora then wheeled her around, letting everyone see the tears coming from one of her eyes, shocking the others while Sora didn't even seem to acknowledge it. "Those fears don't need to stop you from leaning on others in times of need. You may be one of the strongest mages of Fairy Tail, but even you can't shoulder everything alone. You have people who are willing and able to share your burden. So let them."

Erza was silent for a few moments, before she reached a hand to her eye and wiped away her tears. "I'm sorry…" When she finished that, she looked off to the side. "I'm going to vanish from this world, whether I win or lose this battle…"

Sora's eyes hardened at this, as Lucy and Gray looked at her in disbelief.

"Huh?!" "What do you mean?!"

Erza had her armored hands held up in front of her chest. "This is a future I can't fight… As such…" She then looked to them with a sad smile. "As such, I will tell you everything while I still exist…"

Everyone looked at her silently, as she began to tell what she knew. "This is the tower of Heaven, also known as the R-System. It happened over 10 years ago… A black magic cult began constructing it in order to cast a forbidden spell that can bring the dead back to life. It required many human sacrifices, who they also used as slave labor to amplify the amount of magic energy. I was one of the sacrifices here when I was little."

Everyone looked at her in shock of what she said, while she continued. "One by one, people who tried to escape or resist disappeared. I never felt at ease. I was always afraid. Even so, I made friends I could trust… Even if it was for but a brief time. It was around then that I met Jellal."

She then told them of all she went through, all the hardships, and eventually got to the day that she lost her right eye, and Jellal came to her rescue, taking her place. When she was returned to her cell with her friends, she made the decision to fight back, leading the other slaves in a revolt against the cult in the place of the one that gave her hope.

"We stood up for our freedom… To save Jellal… Back then, Jellal was our leader… He had a strong sense of justice… I looked up to him. However," She then looked at them, sorrow in her eyes. "At some point, it was as if Jellal had become another person entirely… If you could call a person truly "evil" … then that is what I would call Jellal."

She told them how hard they fought, and how she discovered her magic after losing Grandpa Rob, and old member of Fairy Tail, and how she heard about the guild in the first place. And when she finally found Jellal again, he had been changed for the worst. Right when they had finally become able to leave the island, Jellal told her that he would have them finish the tower for him, give them purpose even. All in the name of his new god, Zeref. But he wouldn't let her stay, and demanded she leave and never tell anyone of any of it, or ever come back on her own, else he would start killing her old friends.

Everyone watched her, speechless at the story she was telling them. She shook slightly as she stood with her back turned to them, crying from her left eye only. "I… will fight Jellal."

"Hold on, Erza!" Gray spoke up. "That Zeref guy you mentioned…!"

Erza had wiped away her tears by then. "Yes. I'm sure you've heard of him."

"Th-That monster that came out from Lullaby…" Lucy said in recognition. "They called it one of Zeref's demons!"

"That's not all." Erza confirmed. "Deliora was most likely a demon from the Book of Zeref as well."

Sora turned to Gray at that. "The demon that killed your family and that your master beat by sacrificing herself?" Gray nodded at that, having told the story to him before, but still looking at Erza in shock.

"Are you saying Jellal is trying to revive that same Zeref?" Juvia asked in worry.

Erza turned to them then. "I don't understand his motive, but according to Sho, a former friend of mine, they're supposed to become rulers in heaven once Zeref is revived…"

Lucy held a hand to her chin in thought. "This "former friend" stuff just doesn't make any sense to me… Wasn't Jellal the traitor, not you?"

"He must have fed them false information while I was gone." She then looked down in shame. "But I _did_ leave them here for eight whole years… That still makes me a traitor."

"That's bull!" Sora said sharply. "You were gone all this time, unable to help them, because of Jellal threatening the lives of your friends! No one could have done any better in your shoes!"

"That's right!" Lucy affirmed. "You did all that for their sake! And yet-!"

"It doesn't matter now, Sora, Lucy." Lucy looked to the side in sorrow while an angry look entered Sora's eyes. Erza then looked them in the eyes as she continued. "If I defeat Jellal, it will all be over."

Gray and Sora shared a look, not really believing that and remembered Erza saying she would disappear regardless of who won.

But before they could bring it up, a quiet voice cut in. "Wh-What's with that story, Nee-san?" They all looked to the back of the room, and saw Sho with a confused look on his face.

"Sho…" Erza looked at him with sorrow, as he started to look scared and angry.

"Are you trying to get your friends' sympathy with that nonsense?! It's a load of crap! The truth was nothing like that! You blew up our boats and escaped on your own! We all would have ended up on the bottom of the sea had Jellal not caught wind of your betrayal! Jellal said that was the fate of those who don't learn to use magic in the proper way! He said you got drunk with the power of magic and trying to cast off everything in your past, us inclu-!"

Sho was cut off, not by Erza, but by an impact that sent him to the ground before he could react. Holding his face, he couldn't stop Sora from using the hand he punched him with to hoist him up by the collar, looking him in the eye with fury. "You idiot!"

Erza looked at him in shock. "Sora! Put him down!"

"Sorry Erza, but you can beat me up later. He needs to hear this himself." He then redirected all his attention to Sho. "I want you to think VERY carefully about everything you know about Erza. Every encounter. Every word ever spoken. Every emotion she has ever showed. Does she strike you as the type of person who would ever be blinded by anything other than loyalty?!" Sho's eyes widened as he thought about it, and it was hammered home by Gray and Lucy.

"Jellal was the one who told you all that?"

"Would the Erza you knew really have done something like that?"

Sho hung there, taking in those words, and thinking about everything he knew, struggling to figure out which was truth and which was lie. "W-What would you know?! You don't know anything about us!"

Sora then brought him close to his face. "And what do you know of what Erza has been through? What do you know of the people she's met, of the things she's seen? How can you claim to know Erza so well, when you let the words of others tell you the kind of person she is?"

Sho's eyes became saucers at that, and Sora felt the fight leave him. He then softened the look on his face as he gently lowered Sho to the floor, letting him stand on his own and steadying him when he wobbled slightly, his mind starting to break as tears flowed freely. "Jellal's words… Jellal's words were my only salvation... That's why I spent eight long years finishing this tower! For Jellal's sake…" Sho began to shake from the emotions running through his head, and Sora wrapped an arm around him as he struggled to think. "You're saying… it was all a lie…? That _you're_ right… and _Jellal_ is wrong?!"

"That's right." Another new voice cut in, shocking Sho out of his crying as shadows gathered in one part of the room, before revealing Simon, Gray recognizing him instantly as the guy who nearly killed him.

"You!" He then took a step to confront him, but Juvia surprisingly stopped him.

"Please wait, Gray-sama. This gentleman knew he was attacking your double back then."

"What…?!"

"As a dark spell-castor, he surely saw everything clearly. Ascertaining that truth was another reason Juvia came here."

Simon looked right at her. "I'd expect no less from one of the Phantom's renowned Element 4."

"What does this mean?" Sho said, getting Simon's attention.

"Sho. I did it to bring everyone to this tower without arousing your suspicions."

"Wh-Why? Why would you…?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Sho looked back at Sora, who was still by his side and keeping him steady. "Unlike you, he believed in Erza from the start."

Sho then closed his eyes and lowered his head, as Simon walked over to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Sho… Jellal has everyone fooled. I decided to play along until the time was right."

"Simon…" Erza looked at him in shock. "You were…!"

He then turned to his old friend, a kind look in his eye. "Erza. As your friend has said, I have always believed in you. For eight years straight." When Erza looked at him, she could only see the boy she knew all those years ago, and it brought tears back to her eye, this time from joy. He then reached out, and she quickly put her hand in his own. "I'm happy to see you again, Erza. From the bottom of my heart."

"Simon…" They then embraced, Erza happy to finally reunite, truly, with one of her friends, each of her new friends watching the exchange happily, Lucy wiping a few tears from her own eye.

"How…?" The nearly desperate question from Sho got the two to separate, and look at him as he began to cry. "How can everyone have so much faith in you? Why…? Why couldn't _I_ believe in you, Nee-san…?" He then bent over and slammed his fist against the ground. "DAMNIT!" As he began to cry out all of his self-loathing and doubt, Erza could only watch him sadly. "What's real?! What should I believe in?!"

After a few more moments, Erza walked up to and kneeled in front of him, speaking through his sobs. "I realize it's difficult to accept everything all at once. But I _will_ say this… Over the past eight years, I never once forgot about any of you." His sobs then stopped, and Erza pulled him up and into a hug. "I'm sorry I was so helpless… I'm sorry I was so weak…"

"But now you _can_ do something." Simon stated. "Isn't that right?" Erza simply nodded as she continued to hug her little brother. Simon turned to the rest of them. "I have been waiting a long time for this moment. For mighty wizards to gather here…"

"Mighty wizards?" Lucy asked.

Simon nodded. "We're going to fight Jellal… all working together." Everyone nodded at that, while Erza finally stood up, Sho on his arms and beginning to pull himself together, a new fire beginning to burn within him. Simon then looked at them all. "First, we must prevent Salamander and the others from clashing."

"Good luck with that." Sora said. "That guy's mind is a steel trap when fighting is even mentioned. He isn't gonna stop unless he either takes down Wally-aka Blockhead to him-or we manage to convince him completely that he wasn't at fault."

"Then we'd better hurry. This way!" Simon then led them through a passage.

After a few minutes, they were outside the structure on a path of stairs leading around and up the structure. Sora looked down as he ran with the others, whistling at the sight. "Man, this place is tall. If it weren't so creepy and, well, evil, I would definitely be able to enjoy the view of the open ocean from up here."

"Less talking, more running." Gray said, completely focused on finding Natsu, and then fighting Jellal.

"Hey, I can multi-task." Sora smirked, running a little faster and ahead of Gray to prove his point.

Before Gray could remark, Simon started talking as he had two fingers at his temple. "Damn! Both Wally and Milliana have shut off communication! I have no way of telling where they are now!"

"Communication?" Lucy wondered, Juvia explaining to her.

"Telepathic communication magic, no doubt."

Erza stopped to look back at Sho, who still wore a dejected look on his face as he stopped by her side. "Are you alright, Sho?"

"Yeah…" Sho closed his eyes as he lowered his head, before looking at her with a hopeful look in his eyes. "Because you're here, Nee-san." That got a soft smile from Erza, happy to be with the friend she knew again, before the both of them worked to catch up to the others.

As they ran, Gray spoke softly to Juvia. "Hey, can we really trust this guy? I accept he didn't try to kill us and all, but still..."

"I don't intend to make excuses" Simon interrupted.

Gray then put his full attention on the man. "So you heard, huh?"

"A wizard that could be killed _that_ easily would never stand a chance against Jellal. I had also noticed from the start when Sora here created a copy of himself, so I was confident that he would be able to help Lucy." Sora looked a little grumpy at being caught, while Lucy sent him a comforting look. "Plus, I was certain that Natsu wouldn't die."

Sora raised a brow at that. "What made you so certain? The guy is practically a monster, but he isn't invincible."

"None of you realize Natsu's true strength. Once the true strength of a dragon settles inside Natsu, evil will fall!"

Sora looked at Simon critically, trying to ascertain how Simon knows such a thing as certainty, before focusing on the ascent. "Hmm. He's strong, I'll give you that. He probably does have the ability to do so. The key will be in how long it takes him to pull it out, and whether or not he needs any backup."

"A fair point. After all, Jellal's twin is on the Magic Council." Simon said casually.

This statement however, got 4 of the seven currently climbing the stairs to look at him in shock. "What?!" Lucy said for them. "His twin is on the council?!"

"Not only that," Sora and the rest turned to Erza as Simon continued to lead the way. "but Siegrain is a member of the 10 Wizard Saints, a mage with power comparable to the Master. And Jellal is likely to be just as powerful."

Sora blinked at her in shock, before he turned his head forward again and face-palmed. "Of course he would be. Because he wasn't intimidating enough already, he just so happens to be related to one of the most powerful mages in the country. Our luck just isn't cooperating today, isn't it?"

A little while later, they had entered a dark hallway, the walls and ceiling having numerous depictions of demons and creatures on them. After a while of running through them, the eyes of every figure in the hallway glowed red, and a voice echoed throughout the chamber.

" **Welcome, one and all, to the Tower of Heaven.** "

When they heard that, everyone stopped, with Simon, Erza and Sho having faces of recognition.

" **I am Jellal, the ruler of this tower. Both sides have arranged their playing pieces."**

"What the…?!" Gray wondered, trying to discern where the voice was coming from.

"It's Jellal." Simon clarified. "He's talking so the whole tower can hear him."

Sora scowled as he heard the voice. 'I gotta say, the bastard definitely seems like someone I want to punch in the face. And this is just from hearing his voice.' He looked over to see how Erza and Sho were doing. Erza seemed as ready for everything as usual, with a hint of anger. Sho however, looked like he was about to freak out.

" **So, shall we begin… "Heaven's Game"?"**

Sora looked back at one of the eyes at that. "Game? The hell does he think this is?!"

" **The rules are simple. I wish to use Erza as a living sacrifice in a ceremony to revive Zeref."** Everyone's looks hardened at hearing it straight from him, Sho cursing his name as he continued. **"In other words, once the door to heaven opens, I win. But, if you are able to prevent that, then** _ **you**_ **win. However, that by itself wouldn't make for a very fun game. So I have brought three warriors here."**

"Three warriors?!" Simon said in surprise. "Who are they?!"

" **The only way to reach me is through them. In other words, this is a 3 vs 9 battle royale. One final note… There is a chance that the council will attack this location from the Satellite Square…"** Sora's eyes widened from realization and shock, as everyone recognized what he was talking about. **"… using Etherion, the ultimate, all-destroying magic."**

"You gotta be kidding me…" Sora said quietly. "That thing is capable of destroying a country… If they turned it here, then…"

" **It's unclear how much time we have left. However, should the Etherion hit, it will mean destruction… "game over" without any winners."**

"What are they thinking…?!" Lucy said in shock.

Erza tried to understand how he could be so calm about this. "Etherion, you say?! The council would do that…? It's not possible!"

Sora then turned to Simon. "Oi, how does Jellal sound so certain of this?! Does he have a spy on the council, or is this brother of his trying to kill him?!"

Before Simon could try and reply, a flash of light shone nearby, and when everyone looked, they saw Erza inside of one of Sho's cards!

"Erza!" "Sho! What are you doing?!" Gray looked at his friend in shock while Simon confronted Sho.

" **Now, then. Let us play."** As Jellal's voice faded away, every eye dimmed and lost its glow.

Sho held the card with Erza in it shakily, as the mage in question looked at him from inside the card. "I won't let anyone touch Nee-san!"

"Oi! Sho!" He looked at Erza inside his card, before looking at them with a furious face, mixed with desperation.

"I'll defeat Jellal myself!" He then turned and ran down the hall away from them.

"Stop! You can't do it alone!" Simon chased after him, Sora not waiting long to follow him.

"Seriously, will this guy just stop and THINK for a second?!"

As they left the others behind to chase after Sho, they eventually reached a section where the path split. Simon looked at Sora questioningly. "Can you tell which way he went?"

Sora tried to used his eye to narrow it down, but a light shown that blinded it again and he recoiled. "Argh! Son of a… what just happened?!" He looked at Simon. "Something's wrong, I think Jellal did something to keep me from using my vision abilities!"

"Damn!" Simon looked at the numerous passages, then at Sora. "We'll have to split up to try and catch up to him!" Sora nodded, before they each went down a different passage.

Later, as he rounded a corner, he quickly ducked back as he saw what was in the next room. Cherry blossoms on either side of the chamber scattered their petals across the room, the only other door being accessed by a wooden path with Torii gates placed all along it. The floor of the chamber had a calm pond beneath the bridge, with rocks along the base of the walls, giving the chamber a peaceful appearance.

But what he truly took note of was Sho, standing in front of a woman dressed as a shrine priestess with long pink hair, and a dangerous looking sword in a red and yellow sheathe, the hilt being of a similar shade. 'Okay, good news; I went the right way. Bad news; someone beat me here.' She appeared to be in the middle of introducing herself.

"I am called Ikaruga." She then raised her head from its lowered position and opened her eyes, revealing a calm yet predatory look. "Pleased to meet you."

"Get out of my way!" Sho declared, his cards ready in his hand. "Who _is_ this idiot?!" Sora meanwhile tried to stay out of sight, trying to gauge the kind of person that seems to be one of Jellal's "warriors".

"My, such an uncouth man you are." Ikaruga spoke, a tone of condescension in her voice that pushed Sho just enough.

"I got no business with you!" He then threw the cards in his hand, using his magic to turn them into projectiles with high power and increasing their numbers.

Ikaruga however merely looked at them, and reached for her sword. After a few motions that were too fast for Sho to see, she sheathed her sword and each card was split in half along its edge and flew uselessly. Sho and Sora watched the effect with eyes wide from shock. "Impossible…!" Sora hung back as Sho spoke for them both, keeping quiet as he tried to think of a plan.

"There is nothing I cannot cut." Ikaruga stated calmly.

"What are you, a cheap street performer?!" Sho declared angrily, moving to attack again. All of a sudden, the clothes he wore had an X cut into them, the floor receiving a similar mark as blood shot out from the wound that his body just realized it had, Sho falling down as the pain hit him.

"Striking down my opponents faster than they can even process the attack." Ikaruga spoke. "Such is the power of my _Mugetsu_ Style." She then looked in light surprise as a card flew down after falling out of Sho's pocket.

"Sho!" Erza called out as her card slowly fell.

"Nee-san…"

"Oh, my. There you are, Erza!" Ikaruga looked at the card like a hungry predator, as Erza pleaded with Sho.

"Let me out this instant! You don't stand a chance against her!" Sora meanwhile focused on manipulating his magic without giving himself away, hoping that he was right in what he had in mind and that it wouldn't backfire too badly.

"Don't worry…" Sho told her. "I've added shielding to your card… There's absolutely no way she can hurt you from the outside…!"

"Oh?" Ikaruga looked at the card as her stance shifted, accepting the challenge and beginning to draw her sword back from its sheathe. "That's very interesting…"

"Sho! Let me out!" Erza began to pound away at the inside of the card. "That's no ordinary sword she has!"

"It's okay… Trust me…" Ikaruga then quickly drew and sheathed her blade, a flash of light ran across the card, but otherwise remained unharmed as it flashed with Sho's magic. "See?" His eye then widened in shock as he processed Erza blocking a slash with her own sword. "Wha…?! She cut through the spatial dimension?!"

Ikaruga shifted her stance again, causing Sho to look at her in fear and frustration, Erza with determination, and Sora with calm patience, knowing that his time to interfere was near.

The swordswoman then unleashed a flurry of slashes that tore apart the bridge and sent Sho off to the side in pain, Erza blocking every slash that invaded her prison as best she could. Once the assault had stopped, a light shown from Erza's card, fading away to reveal her free, kneeling with her eyes closed and sword in hand.

"You were kind enough to strain the fabric of space in there." She then opened her eyes and looked at her opponent. "So I took the liberty of cutting it wide open."

Sho looked at her in awe. 'The sword transcending space was amazing enough, but using that instance to her advantage… The Titania is truly powerful…!'

"About time you got out of there." All three turned back to the way Sho had come, Sora finally walking out from where he had hidden with a crystal blade in his hand. "Honestly, I don't think this is the kind of opponent I could beat on my own, or even with Sho's help."

"Sora!"

As Erza looked at him in surprise, Ikaruga merely raised an eyebrow. "So, you finally stepped out from where you watched?"

Sora smirked nervously at her as he stood a little behind Erza. "Of course you noticed me…" He then bowed a little. "Hello. My name is Sora. Nice to meet you."

Ikaruga smiled softly at that. "My, so polite."

Sora straightened up at that. "Well, you didn't seem to like when Sho was "uncouth", as you say. Thought I might last a little longer if I was more polite. So, where did Jellal find you?"

Her smile stretched a bit more as everyone looked at her. "I hail from the Death's Head Order. I am Captain Ikaruga, of the Trinity Raven." She then bowed slightly. "Nice to meet you."

Sora gulped, now knowing exactly who they were dealing with, having kept track of Dark Guilds so he didn't step on any toes while he was wandering and thieving. Death's Head Order was a Dark Guild, a very specific type of Dark Guild that only takes assassination jobs. And the Trinity Raven were the three most dangerous members. Even as a wandering craftsman, he heard enough to know he didn't EVER want to run into them. He was suddenly very glad he didn't rush right into things. "N-Nice to meet you."

"Ikaruga, is it?" Erza interrupted. "We have no business with you. Begone."

Ikaruga straightened up, looking straight at Erza, the predator once again present in her eyes. "Is that how you say hello?"

Erza then looked at her in shock, as her armor then shattered and crumbled away, kneeling as the attack that caused it finally made itself known and leaving her in her normal clothes with some cuts along her body. Sho and Sora looked at her in concern, Sho not believing what he saw. "That can't be…!"

"My, don't tell me you didn't you see it?" Now her face was that of a true killer. As Erza stood back up, Ikaruga chuckled a little, before singing softly, her voice echoing across the chamber. "Is what you gaze at… the evil apparition… far beyond the mist?"

She then addressed her directly. "You were so focused on finding Jellal that you didn't notice the sword flash that surrounded you." When Erza was fully standing, she looked at Ikaruga with a look of pure fury, something Sora had only seen a couple of times and that each time made him worried. For the other person.

Ikaruga however, merely seemed satisfied. "Yes, yes, that's the look." Sho looked at her nervously as he saw "the look", realizing that Erza was completely serious now. "I'm not your ordinary passerby, you know."

"No, it would seem not." Erza agreed.

"Yeah, just one with a really fast sword that will cut through anything…" Sora had a slightly nervous look on his face as he kept slightly back, figuring out his means of attack while Erza summoned her Heaven's Wheel armor, a sword in each hand.

"And one who is our enemy."

"Come." Ikaruga shifted to a battle stance at that, goading Erza on. A moment later, Erza charged forward, Ikaruga narrowing her eyes as she looked on. With a calm grace, she blocked every blow from Erza's swords, her back to Erza as she took to the air with her armor's magic, summoning a couple dozen blades around her.

"Heaven's Wheel: Circle Sword!" She then sent her blades as they spun in a circle, like a razor-sharp disk.

Ikaruga looked at them calmly as she drew her sword again. " _Mugetsu Style…"_ With a few slashes that were faster than they could see, every blade was shattered and destroyed, hitting the bridge around her without so much as a scratch on her. "… _Yasha-senku!"_

"All the swords…!" Sho watched in disbelief as Erza came down for a landing, Ikaruga drawing and sheathing her blade in a flash, causing Erza's Heaven's wheel armor to shatter too, drawing some blood as well.

While Erza recoiled from the attack, Ikaruga shifted again. " _Mugetsu Style…"_ Her magic then flared, a bright glow shining from underneath as Erza squinted from the light, Sho calling out to her in worry. Ikaruga then drew her sword and quickly ran it against the ground, above her head, and aimed at Erza, the sword trailing flames as it did. " _… Karuda-en!"_

As the destructive blast was carried down the bridge, the smoke eventually cleared to see Erza being pushed back in her Flame Empress Armor.

"Flame Empress Armor…" Ikaruga noted. "Highly resistant to fire. I'm impressed that you were able to requip during that instant." That was the moment that Erza's armor shattered again, Erza barely able to keep standing from the damage.

While the swordswoman faced Erza, Sora leapt up from the side of the bridge behind her, his usual crystal equipment now in place and having silently made his way to flank her from underneath and swung his blade down, only for Ikaruga to vanish from sight just before he hit. Landing, he then turned in shock, Ikaruga standing about 5 feet behind him and with her back to him.

Her sword being sheathed slowly…

"Jellal wants Erza alive, but he never said anything about you. _Mugetsu Style…"_ Her sword was then placed firmly in its sheath, the sound echoing in the stillness within the room. " _… Shunpo!"_

Sora's eyes widened, and Erza and Sho watched in shock as several slashes then flashed through Sora's chest.

* * *

 **A/N** : So this looks like a nice place to stop for now. Haha, please don't hate me too much, but I could not resist ending a chapter like that. As for what happens next, I refuse to give anything away and will just make you all wait until the next update to see how this goes. I would like note now that the story will incorporate elements from both the manga and the anime, seeing as the anime was toned down on the blood to make it more kid friendly.

Also, to pokeheroaadyn, sorry about the appearance of the butchered haikus but I had already planned this chapter out a while ago and I could not find it in me to go without them. Yes, they suck, but I don't think Sora would be confidant enough after what he saw to try and keep her from saying it.

Anyway, I hope you all look forward to what I had cooked up for the next chapter, and please feel free to tell me your thoughts on my story in any way you feel like, and be sure to leave a fav or follow if you haven't already. See you all next time.


	11. True Strength

Hey everyone, sorry for the wait. Hopefully this chapter is worth it. I will admit, it is shorter than my usual chapters, but only because I couldn't think of any other points to stop the chapter on. Anyway, not sure what else to say here so let's go straight to reviews then the story. Enjoy!

 **Theboblinator** : Thanks, and yeah it's a little difficult trying to find ways to alter canon this early on. Hope what I have to show you is a surprise for what Sora was up to. Also, glad you seem to enjoy the interactions Sora has with Mira, especially since I keep thinking I want to pair them instead. (And yeah, I also ship Jerza anyway, haha.)

 **pokeheroeaadyn** : Thanks, glad to hear it. And you are about to see how your guess works out.

 **Zoofan** : Sorry this wasn't out sooner, hope you like it!

 **LoyalReader** : Posting more now, and hope to keep you 'Loyal'!

* * *

Everything seemed to slow to a crawl, as Erza and Sho looked at Sora in horror, Ikaruga having just given him a fatal attack. Sora's face didn't move an inch, nor did it turn from Ikaruga's form, as his body stood still as if it didn't yet realize the damage done to it from the gaps created in it from the slashes. Ikaruga even opened her eyes in satisfaction, looking at her latest kill.

Only for them to flash with shock as a cyan blade was swung right at her face.

Unsheathing her blade again, she blocked the blade and the two swords clashed, Sora looking at her with a smirk as he swung a couple more times, Ikaruga blocking each attack and swiping her blade through his midsection, looking shocked as it passed through without drawing any blood or making him visibly react in any way. In fact, the opening the slash had created was quickly sealing like the previous ones had!

As she finished her attack, each mage jumped back, Ikaruga in surprise that his blade didn't shatter against hers, and Sora looking at her with a nervous smile. "Phew, that was close! For a brief moment there, I wasn't sure it would work…"

Erza and Sho were now looking at him with just as much shock as before, except this time was in disbelief that he survived! Erza blinked in shock in the remains of her Flame Empress Armor as she tried to ask him. "S-Sora… How…?!"

Ikaruga even narrowed her eyes in suspicion. "What did you do? How did you survive my sword? I can cut anything, and yet I couldn't cut you or that blade."

Sora wiped some sweat from his forehead as he answered. "Oh, you did cut me. I just put myself back together." Sora then backed up until he was beside Erza. "Tell me, milady. Have you ever tried to cut the wind and the air?"

Her eyes widened at that, before her face became a smile of understanding. "I see… You made your body like that of the very air." Sora smirked, confirming her suspicions. "So while I can cut you, you will simply flow back together. That sort of thing is a very advanced technique, and yet we have no information of you being able to do so. Why is this?"

"It's something new I literally tried for the first time just now. I wasn't even sure it would work considering this is also the first time I tried using that element since acquiring it earlier. Guess it does." He then shrugged. "Though I will be honest, I have no idea how long I can keep something like that up, or what state I'll be in afterwards. Or even if I will survive this…" He then raised his crystal blade. "As for this, also something new. This blade is now maybe about as sharp as your own, and so the two of them are probably having a hard time deciding which one should be destroyed."

"I see… You truly might offer a challenge then. That said…" She then turned her gaze back on Erza. "Surely it feels uncouth being dressed like that in the presence of a pair of men. Why don't you try donning the most powerful armor you have? You may even challenge me beside this interesting young man here."

Erza narrowed her eyes in dangerous fury, as Sho cursed Ikaruga, calling her a monster. A crimson magic circle then appeared beneath Erza, before she requipped into a suit of armor Sora had never seen before. The armor was black and gray, with intimidating black spikes jutting out from every conceivable spot, a series of spike-like protrusions circling her neck like a choker. Erza looked at her opponent with eyes that were red from fury when the armor appeared, slowly dimming. "You'll regret this! Purgatory Armor, requip!"

Sora looked at the state Erza was in, eyes wide as he nearly took a step back away from her and the sense of danger she practically exuded. "… Holy crap… I knew she could get scary, but I have never been more afraid of her than I am right now."

Erza then summoned a sword with similar spikes along the back, the whole thing looking like a demonic mix of club and cleaver, creating a powerful wind as it slammed into the bridge. "No one has ever seen this armor and endured my wrath!"

"So that's your most powerful armor?" Ikaruga looked calmly at her as Erza hefted the massive weapon with ease and had it ready behind her. "Come."

"Sora! Show her no mercy!" Erza commanded, the crystal mage standing straight at her call.

"Y-Yes ma'am!" Erza then charged at Ikaruga, Sora following right behind her before his mind even registered he was doing so.

Erza leapt straight up, letting Sora charge right at Ikaruga herself. The swordswoman blocked the attack and clashed blades with him for a few seconds, before Erza descended with a downward swing that Ikaruga barely dodged while Sora simply let the attack pass right through him, the shockwave of the blow causing the water to erupt in a path that ran right into a wall and sent dust flying.

Erza then swung her blade horizontally, creating a shockwave that Sora used as a boost to leap over and above Ikaruga as the attack itself forced her to leap back to avoid harm, trading more blows with Sora while airborne. His attacks kept getting blocked, while her attacks kept passing through harmlessly.

Before she landed, she kicked Sora up and away with her thick sandals. When she touched the ground, she leapt back with an excited and demented face while drawing her sword again, returning it to its sheath as the shockwave passed by her and destroying everything around her, not harming her one bit.

Erza then once more charged at her, Sora quickly recovering and doing the same, as he caused his blade to shine both purple and a cyan. Ikaruga met their challenge with a smirk, leaping about Erza's attack and letting the tip of her sheath drag across the weapon. When Sora leapt above Erza to attack her, she simply maneuvered her body in the air to go just beneath the attack, only a few strands of hair being cut away. When she was behind both mages, she turned to face them both and quickly drew her blade and swung.

Sho looked in fear as Ikaruga landed a short distance behind them, sword sheathed once more. Sora hit the ground hard as his blade shattered into pieces with air blowing around, along with his gauntlets and greaves, a strained look on his face. Erza stood still for a few moments, panting and trying to catch her breath, before her armor and weapon shattered, blood spraying off, and she fell to her knees in pain.

"Now do you understand?" Ikaruga asked, turning her head to look at them while her back was turned. "There is no suit of armor you can wear that can withstand my sword. And you, young lad, you cannot harm me within the amount of time you seem to have with that wind-body technique. Give it up."

Erza grit her teeth as she stood up, Sora pushing himself to lean against a pillar. Sho meanwhile was on his knees, weeping silently. 'Th-They can't beat her… Nee-san, even with help, can't beat her…!'

Erza then turned to Ikaruga, a calm look on her face, before she closed her eyes and let the light of her magic envelop her. When it died down, Erza was wearing red pants with a flame-pattern at the ends of the legs, and she wore nothing on her upper body but some bandages wrapped around her chest. Her hair was done up in a ponytail that hung up above the top of her head, and she had a longsword in each hand.

Sora looked at her in shock, never seeing her ready for battle in anything but armor. He'd never seen her wearing such simple clothes for a fight!

"What are you thinking?" Ikaruga questioned. "That outfit is nothing but ordinary cloth…"

"What?!" Sho looked at Erza with just as much disbelief as Sora was, both wondering what she was doing.

"You've really underestimated me." Ikaruga said in annoyance. "After all, you and Sora working together in your strongest armor couldn't defeat me. What can you do in regular clothes?"

"Nee-san, what are you doing?! You must have plenty of other strong armor! You're even stronger than that, right?!"

Erza stood still at Sho's questions, Sora waiting for how she would respond. "… I'm… I'm not strong at all… Not at all…" She then closed her eyes, recalling her past since joining the guild. "I lost many friends as I looked on. I wasn't able to protect those dear to me… And… I was always crying… To make myself… To make myself seem stronger… I sealed my heart inside armor… and cried…" She then looked at Ikaruga with fierce determination. "I always wore armor because I was weak. I was never able to take it off…"

Sho and Sora looked at her in awe, neither one having ever seen this side of her before, as she continued to confront Ikaruga. "I am prepared to cut down any opponent, clothed or not." Ikaruga stated, thinking she thought Erza would be trying to gain her sympathy.

But Erza didn't even seem to hear her, unless she was simply not bothering to respond to them. "I had believed my armor would protect me. But that was wrong. I had tried to plug up the cracks in my armor where my heart had connected with others'. Fairy Tail taught me that human relationships can feel so close and warm!"

"Nee-san…" Tears fell from Sho's eyes as he listened to Erza's words, while Sora himself began to feel inspired by her.

Erza then raised her swords to her sides as she looked right at Ikaruga. "I am free of hesitation now! I will strike you down with my all!"

As Ikaruga analyzed Erza's current level of threat, Sora looked down with a grin at her words. Looking back up with a determined look, he raised his fist and aimed it at Erza's swords, a pure white magic circle appearing before his magic shot off and hit her blades, much to her surprise. After her blades stopped glowing, everyone was treated to the sight of them glowing radiantly in the same color as Sora's eye, before small ribbons of energy reached up from the base of the blade and twisting around all the way to the tip.

Looking back at him in surprise, Sora answered the question on Erza's face with a tired smirk. "That right there… is the last of the magic… I can spare. I may be a bit too weak right now to help you fight her, but there's no way in hell I'm letting you fight all alone! You always have each and every one of us backing you up, Erza!"

He then grinned up at her as he leaned back against a pillar. "Now then… Kick her ass already…!"

Erza then nodded lightly, a small smile on her face. "You got it." She then turned to face Ikaruga, a fierce resolve burning in her eyes. "Now then. It's time for us to finish this." Ikaruga smiled at her, as the both of them took a battle stance, Sora's crystals causing Erza's blades to glow a series of colors, streams of similarly colored energy flowing around the blades like ethereal ribbons.

After staring each other down for a few moments, they leapt at each other, each swinging their blades faster than either Sora or Sho can see, before landing behind each other as wind blew around them briefly, yet fiercely. For a few moments, there was no movement, nor sound. Then, the crystals Sora gave Erza shattered, as well as one of her swords, while blood sprayed out from some new cuts on Erza's body.

Ikaruga then laughed lightly. "This battle is over." Then, a spider web of cracks appeared on her own blade, before it shattered, blood spraying from her front as it did! Ikaruga remained still for a few moments, before she fell down with a smile. "Impressively done…"

"Amazing!" everyone shifted their attention to Sho as he congratulated Erza. "You really are amazing, Nee-san!"

"Are you alright, Sho?"

"Yeah, I think so."

Erza nodded, before looking at Sora. "And you?"

Sora smiled lightly. "Pretty tired, but fine otherwise…"

Ikaruga laughed a bit more, eyes closed. "Me, losing… This is the first time… since I joined the guild… Even so… Both you _and_ Jellal have lost…"

"What do you mean?!" Sho demanded of her, but calmed down as Sora raised a hand.

"Easy there. She's already talking. No sense in being rude to her as she's like this." He then turned to look at her. "Go on, please. What are you talking about?"

Ikaruga smiled at his kindness, before she slowly raised an arm up to the ceiling. "In fifteen minutes…" As her arm was straight up, she sang a new Haiku. "The light of Justice… shall come raining from the sky… massacre awaits…" She then dropped it as she looked up, a small chuckle coming out. "Such a terrible Haiku…"

"Is she talking about Etherion?!"

"Most likely." Sora answered Erza, while getting up and kneeling next to Ikaruga. "I don't approve of the life you lived, but I am sorry that things went this far…"

The swordswoman continued that soft smile. "Showing kindness to an enemy… you truly are a gentleman…"

"I'm just not fond of death, no matter who's on the receiving end."

She closed her eyes once more. "I see… Do try to keep that good heart of yours… It is truly rare in this ugly world…" She then spoke no more, and Sora gave her a short prayer, before going over to the others as they waited.

When he got to them, Erza looked at him quizzically. "How did you acquire a new element already?"

Sora's eyes widened at that, before he started nervously chuckling. "Uh… I… um…" His arm then reached to the back of his head as he averted his gaze from Erza. "S-So, apparently… the manager for the resort may or may not have possibly gotten their hands on a Prism to which they might have put up as a grand prize for one of their games, and I may have considered taking it before we came after you for a little extra advantage depending on what happened when we caught up with your kidnappers, so…" Sora's voice got quieter and quieter as Erza's face grew sterner and sterner throughout his explanation.

"Are you telling me, you stole what is still widely considered a priceless piece of art from a bygone age, mere minutes after I was captured?"

Sora seemed to shrink before her and looked everywhere but her. "U-Uh, I was thinking more like 'pickup-now-pay-back-later'…" She still looked furious, and he twiddled his thumbs out of fear. "Y-You w-wouldn't discipline an injured person, would you?"

"Injured; no." Sora let out a sigh at that, only to freeze when she continued. "After they've recovered; Most certainly."

Fear led to Sora losing the use of his legs and promptly fell to his knees. He then looked down at his legs that refused to listen, then slowly up at the guild disciplinarian. He then said nothing, only having enough control to gulp loudly.

"Still. If you hadn't, you might not have survived any of that." Sora was surprised as she gently placed a hand on his head, giving him a soft smile. "Thank you for your trust and support."

Sora blinked a couple times in shock, but then returned the smile. "Anytime."

"But we will continue this discussion later."

"Yeah, I thought so." Tears streamed out of his eyes comically at that.

Erza then turned to the card user. "Sho! Bring Sora with you, and take Simon and everyone from Fairy Tail and get away from this tower as fast as you can!"

"B-But…!"

Erza stopped him with a kind smile. "Can you do that for me, Sho?"

Unable to fight her words, he looked away in sorrow. "Yeah…" Erza then turned to Sora, and her expression stopped his argument before he could even start.

"… What about you?" Sora asked instead, neither one wanting to leave, but both accepting they don't have the strength right now to help her.

Erza turned and looked at the other end of the chamber, stating her intentions clearly. "I'm going to settle things… once and for all!"

Sora and Sho watched her go, before Sho helped Sora to walk. After a few minutes, Sho stopped and held a hand to his head. "Ah, Simon! Yeah, sorry for running off like that. I was a major idiot. But Sora caught up to me, Nee-san's fine, and they even managed to bring down one of the Trinity Raven… We were too weak, so Nee-san told us to meet up with you guys and get away while we can… Nee-san, went after Jellal… We tried to stop her, but she wouldn't take no for an answer… Okay, we'll head to the boat. You stay alive. The Etherion will be firing in less than 15 minutes." Sho then removed his hand and continued to support Sora out.

"So, what's the update?"

"Simon met up with Natsu and is taking him with to the top of the tower to help Nee-san. Wally and Milliana are bringing Lucy and Juvia to the boats, and the cat is supposed to be taking the other guy there as well. Seems like those three were able to take down the other members of the Trinity Raven, so there shouldn't be any more interference."

Sora nodded slowly. "Alright, makes sense. Hopefully they manage a victory…"

* * *

By the time the both of them got to the boat, Sora was nearly passed out from the adrenaline from earlier finally fading away, now sitting next to Happy near the back of the boat as everyone began to float away. While Juvia was the only one still passed out, Gray and Lucy were protesting that they shouldn't be leaving yet.

"Damn! Turn this boat back!"

"No can do!" Wally turned down Gray's demand yet again.

"She told us we had to get away from here!" Milliana reinforced.

"But Erza's still inside! And Natsu!" Lucy protested.

"Nee-san will be fine. We have to have faith in her…"

"And with Natsu's track record, Jellal will be begging for mercy the moment they meet." Sora said, trying to convince himself as much as the others.

"We can't leave it up to Natsu!" Gray persisted.

"It's out of our hands now." Wally leaned his back on the edge of the boat. "Simon is with them. Things will work out somehow."

""Somehow"?! You can't be serious!" Lucy snapped at him, making Milliana upset.

"Nya! You don't have to yell!"

"Calm down, everyone!" Sho tried to get everyone to settle down, but they apparently weren't having it.

"Shut up!" Gray shouted. "Just take us back! I'm gonna save Erza…!"

"We have to hurry!" Lucy supported. "There's no time!"

"I said no!" Wally once again stated.

"SHUT UP!" Before anyone else could bring anything else up, Happy became louder and angrier than any other time Sora could remember, scaring everyone into silence. "Gimme a break! I wanna go back too, but there's nothing we can do! The Etherion is gonna come raining down any time now!"

Happy had tears in his eyes at that point, but he kept going, keeping everyone's attention. "But I'm sure Natsu will get Erza out of there! Simon told me so! Once the true power of the Salamander awakens in him, not even Jellal can…" Happy was outright crying at this point, no one able to argue his words, Milliana crying along with him. "Not even Jellal can…"

Happy flinched when a hand touched down on the top of his head, and looked over to Sora, who was giving him a kind smile. "Thanks for that, Happy." He then turned a serious look over to Gray and Lucy. "I know the both of you want to stay and help. Hell, everyone on this boat wants to help her! But look at the state we're in." Gray and Lucy looked down at the floor of the boat, remembering the fights they were in and how far they were already pushed.

"As we are right now, we'd only be a burden for the others, who already will have enough trouble without trying to keep us alive. All we can do is have faith that Erza and Natsu can defeat Jellal, and find a way to survive the Etherion…" Sora then turned to look at the tower, which was slowly getting further away. From the distance, Sora could make out a part of the top having a hole busted through. "Because it seems the fight has already started."

A short while later, light shone through the clouds above the tower, everyone staring at it in shock, all feeling the massive amount of magic energy being used. Lucy's eyes widened in shock. "That light…!

"It's the Etherion!" Wally confirmed their fears, each of them looking at it in fear.

Sora gulped as he shielded his left eye as best he could, the sheer amount of magic energy nearly blinding it. "If that thing comes down… well, best case scenario? I hope all of you are strong swimmers!" Milliana let out a whine of fear at the thought, apparently hating water as much as an actual cat.

Happy however kept his eyes trained on the top of the tower. "Natsu… Erza… Hurry and get out of there…"

After a few more minutes, the light shone even more, the energies disrupting the waters and causing gales of wind to blow around them. "It's happening!" Happy cried out.

"Natsu!" "Erza!" As Gray and Sora called out for their friends, the Satellite Square above released the power on the other side, raining pure, destructive power from the heavens, and completely consuming the tower itself. As the blast took hold, the shockwave caused a massive wave that blasted away from the tower and struck their boat, sending it and them into the air before they fell out into the water.

Fortunately, Juvia had chosen that time to reawaken, and used her magic to gather up everyone inside a protective dome of water, something she struggled to hold together as the sea surged around them in a fury, everyone still feeling the shockwaves caused by the Etherion. As the waters slowly started to calm, Juvia kept her magic around them and held them above the water, everyone looking in silence at the impact site, smoke and steam still rising.

Sorrow and shock filled the eyes of everyone, none of them wanting to accept what they just saw. "No way…!" "Natsu… Erza…" Lucy and Happy looked at the rising pillar of smoke, trying not to believe what they just saw, while Sora decided to forsake whatever headache he might get later and used his eye to try and see through the smoke to try and see if they somehow survived the blast.

But what he saw made his heart skip a beat in shock. "What… the hell…?!"

The others look at him questioningly, but as he simply stares at the column in silence, they try to get a look for themselves, noticing that it was slowly starting to clear. Then they realized his shock as they saw a large crystal taking the place that the Tower of Heaven once occupied, looking like a colossal tree of crystal, pieces of the original structure crumbling off of it.

"A crystal…?" Happy asked quietly, tears still in his eyes.

"No, it's a magic crystal…" Gray clarified. "A lacrima!"

"They're alright, right?!" Lucy pleaded. "Natsu and Erza and that Simon guy…?!"

Everyone was silent, trying to process what was going on, before Gray asked the big question.

"This is the R-system?!"

"Yeah. It's the true form of the R-system we built. You know?"

"It's active!" Wally and Milliana responded.

"Active?!" Lucy looked at the rest in shock. "Does this mean Zeref is going to be revived?!"

"We don't know. This is the first time we've ever seen it active ourselves…" Sho answered.

"Natsu and Erza are inside there?!" Gray demanded.

"Simon, too… And Jellal."

Sora just looked at it in shock, never having conceived of a lacrima of that size, and wondering how in the hell it was created. After a few moments of thought, his blood stopped cold. "That son of a bitch…" Everyone turned to him again, as he voiced his fears. "He planned on it… No, he intended for it to happen from the start…"

Everyone looked at him in confusion, Sho being the one to ask him. "Sora, what's going on?"

"Sho… Tell me… Did you ever ask… how Jellal was going to power this thing?" Sho looked at him in confusion, before he elaborated. "No matter how many people are sacrificed to bring back the dead, actually doing so would require a massive, if not astronomical amount of magic… Something no one person would be able to supply, maybe not even a nation…" He then looked up at the clouds. "But, there is something with that level of power…"

Everyone's eyes widened as they connected the dots, fear and horror stretching across their faces as Sora continued. "He planned on this from the beginning, intending for the Etherion to rain down on the tower, so he could soak up every ounce of power it had with this lacrima, and using that energy to power the tower! This really was just a game to him… and he played us from the start…!"

Gray practically growled, staring at the tower in fury. "That bastard! He lied to us about the Etherion destroying the place just so we would be out of the way and unable to help Erza!"

"But there's nothing we can do anyway!" Sho walked to the front, just as angry as he looked at the top. "None of us have the energy or ability to help Erza defeat Jellal. If he's just been stalling for time until the Etherion fired, then he has no more need to hold anything back. None of us would stand a chance as we are…"

Everyone tried to think of something, anything they could do, just to find a way to deny Jellal of what he desires. But none of them could come up with any ideas, so they simply watched and waited, some of them either on their knees or sitting down.

"I hope Natsu and Erza are okay!" Lucy said after a few minutes of silence.

"They're fine!" Happy insisted, looking at the tower with a determined look on his face. "They're both Fairy Tail wizards after all!"

"Yeah." Gray agreed. "All we can do now is have faith in them!"

"Still sucks we can't do anything ourselves, but you're right." Sora stared at it from his knees, hating the fact that even though he has a new gem-type, he can't do anything with it right now!

At that moment, Lucy's eyes lit up with a crazy idea. She then turned to the person she thought might be able to do something. "Hey, can I ask you something?"

* * *

A/N: Alright, that wraps up this chapter, and hopefully the next one won't take me a month to post. Haha, seriously though, I hope everyone who read this enjoyed what I had here. I rewrote parts of this chapter several times until I got it to something I was alright with. Now I can't remember if I said this before, so just to clarify this story will employ elements from both the anime and Manga, such as the part where in the original canon of the manga each member of Trinity Raven wound up dying by the end of the arc, despite the anime showing them surviving in the end.

Next, as for Sora's new element, there will be a few issues caused by his rushed means of acquiring it to be revealed in the next few chapters, including with how he used it to replicate a power similar to Juvia's Water Body spell. That said, I will also mention that I've reached the point where he has all the element types I wanted to give him up until the next few arcs are finished, any more going to him no earlier than the S-class exams.

So with that, I hope to see you all again and that I don't need a month to update this. Haha, anyway, please PM or Review me with your thoughts and leave a fav/follow for this story if you haven't already to let me know how I'm doing. Later guys!


	12. To Topple a God

A/N: Sorry for the delays in releasing this next chapter, told myself I'd try to update my other story before updating this one because of how long it was taking to work on chapters for it. Hopefully the content is good enough for you all to forgive me and that this was worth the wait.

Reviews:

Zoofan; Simon dying was something I had planned to change from the start, and I hope you like how I went about that.

Pokeheroaadyn; Glad you liked it! And yeah, Sora's good at getting himself in trouble, but at least he means well. Erza's still gonna hold that over him though for a little bit. Otherwise, thanks for the support and hope you enjoy what I did here!

* * *

Jellal wasn't angry. He wasn't upset. No. He was truly and thoroughly livid!

He had managed to capture Erza with a Bind Snake after regaining the magic he used to create the projected persona of Wizard Saint and Council member Siegrain, and was beginning to assimilate her with the tower to activate it. Only for Natsu to come in at the last minute and remove her from the lacrima.

After stopping Erza from arguing with him, Natsu then proceeded to fight Jellal himself, hitting him with consecutive attacks that didn't even faze him, before Jellal showed him the power he really holds and just about wiped the floor with him. After realizing that fighting Jellal head on wouldn't work out as easily as he thought, he then realized there was another way to beat him: By doing one of the very things he does best.

Destroying everything in sight!

Natsu then began to focus less on having his hits hurt Jellal, and focused on letting them hit the tower, thus not only damaging the R-system itself, but also causing some of the trapped magic energy to leak out.

Now Jellal was looking at Natsu with pure fury, as the Fire Dragon Slayer just busted up a large portion of the floor. "I spent… I spent eight long years constructing this, and now you've gone and…!"

Natsu laughed a little as he stood back up from his latest attack. "Tough luck. Like I told you before, destroying stuff is our specialty…"

Erza, laying on the ground in exhaustion, looked at him in fear. 'Natsu… You barely have enough strength to stand now…'

"YOU WILL PAY!" Jellal shouted, crossing his arms in front of him and raising them up, a large magic circle appearing there as he activated one of his Heavenly Body magic's most powerful spells, the magic density alone strong enough to blow fierce winds across the room that had Natsu bracing himself.

From where Erza lay, trying not to get blown away, she noticed something shining and turned her gaze to look at it, shocked at the scope of the magic he was using as Natsu tried to make sense of it. "Wh-What is this magic?! It's making me sick…!"

Erza then observed how the spell was making the shadows present behave, disbelief clear in her voice. "The shadows are starting to bend _toward_ the light! Oh no! This magic…!"

"Prepare to plummet into infinite darkness, dragon wizard!" Above Jellal, a black orb appeared in place, the winds surging around it as it threatened to pull in everything around it with its shockingly intense gravitational pull.

"Jellal!" Erza then found the strength to get up and stand in front of Natsu, arms wide as she attempted to shield him. "Are you able to kill me?!" Jellal actually looked at her in shock as he saw the determination in her eyes, the amount of power in his spell dimming until it practically wasn't there. "You need my body to revive Zeref, don't you?!"

"Yes…" Jellal admitted. "The general requirement is a body of a wizard comparable to one of the Ten Wizard Saints. But it no longer needs to be you now." Jellal had a shadow over his eyes at this, and both Erza and Natsu widened their eyes in shock at his words. " _Both_ of you shall be obliterated!" He then recommenced powering up his spell, Erza having to brace herself so not to be pulled in, the black orb now having white dots throughout it, giving it the appearance of a localized night sky.

"Erza! Move!" Natsu pleaded with her, not wanting her to sacrifice herself for him.

Erza merely put a grin on her face as she remained where she was. "There's nothing for you to be worried about. I will protect you!"

"Stoooop!"

"Heavenly Body Spell…" Jellal looked at the both of them in demented glee. "Altairis!" He then threw the orb of condensed gravity at them, smashing a path through the floor as it hurtled towards them.

"ERZAAA!" Natsu called out in horror as Erza braced herself for the attack, before a large figure swept in front of her and held their arms out, a purple magic circle forming in front of them as they did. As this happened, a purple light shown out just in front of the circle and a portion of the ground underneath shone a light yellow, before the spell finally ran into resistance. Natsu, Erza, and Jellal all looked on in surprise as the figure grit their teeth from effort, before the sphere exploded, something everyone out in the water could witness, fearful of what happened.

After a few seconds, the smoke began to clear in the room, and everyone could see the battered and bruised form of Simon who stood panting after becoming a shield for Erza.

Natsu and Erza looked at him in shock. "Y-You…"

Erza was then reminded in that moment, of when Grandpa Rob sacrificed himself for her, and tears threatened to spill as she looked at the image of her friend. "Simon…?"

"… Erza…" Simon then finally moved and fell backwards, falling onto his rear as he tried to keep himself from falling flat.

Erza immediately ran up to him as he fell down. "Simon!" As she ran to his side, Jellal took a few steps forward to look at him.

"You were still crawling around here, you little pest?"

"Why didn't you escape…?! Simon!" Erza tried to get him to talk to her as he panted from the effort of the magic he held back.

The darkness user looked at her with a small smile as he tried to catch his breath. "I-I'm glad… I always wanted… to be helpful to you… someday…"

"I understand! Just don't talk anymore!"

Simon smirked at that. "Yeah… But first… let me thank someone… for helping me stop that…" Erza was confused about what he was talking about, then everyone finally realized that the floor beneath Simon was glowing a soft yellow.

Jellal looked at this in confusion, noticing that Simon's wounds were slowly healing. "What is this? None of them should have any sort of recovery magic. What's happening?"

"On your left!"

Jellal turned to the direction the voice came from, only for something to hit his face from the left and send him back a few feet. Looking for the source of the attack, he was confused to see nothing, not sensing anyone there. Then he felt someone kicking him from behind, knocking him a few more feet. When he reeled back to find what hit him, he once more saw nothing, and began to swivel in all directions, not seeing anyone new and two of the three others there watching in confusion.

He then felt a slight tapping on his chest and looked down, only for a bright purple light to rush up and slam into his chin, sending him skyward and through the ceiling. Using his Meteor spell to keep airborne and stabilize himself, he looked at the spot he once stood on and finally saw Sora flash into sight with a cocky smirk. "That's strike 3! You're outta here!"

Erza and Natsu were now shocked again. Simon however merely smiled as Sora looked back at him. "You're welcome for the pick-me-up and the extra shielding, now take a rest and let the rest of us handle this."

Simon closed his eyes in acceptance as Erza looked at him in worry. "Sora, what are you doing here?! You're too weak to fight, let alone use your Crystal Heart abilities like that!"

"Indeed." Sora looked up at the airborne Jellal as he spoke. "You should barely be able to stand, and your healing abilities shouldn't be anywhere near enough to get you to the point you seem to be at now. Not only that, but I know for a fact that you left with the others on the last boat. You shouldn't be anywhere near here."

Sora grinned at him at that as he stretched his limbs. "The second part has the easiest answer. Once we figured out a way to make the fight easier on Erza and Natsu, Happy was more than willing to get me back to the tower as fast as his wings could take him, before he went back to the others for safety."

"Oh really?" Jellal smirked at his foolishness, knowing that he had accounted for everything and had a countermeasure for each prepared. "Care to tell me how you intend to make the fight easier?"

"In that case, I have two questions for you." Sora held up a hand and counted them off. "First, where are we? Second, what can I do?"

Jellal raised a brow in amusement, knowing that Sora's magic revolved around crystals and lacrima, but also knowing his supply of magic power was just about exhau-

He then froze for a second, processing what he just thought about, and widened his eyes in shock at the conclusion he arrived at, which Sora took as his cue to smirk devilishly and keep going. "I'll admit it was a bit disorienting, and took some getting used to. I don't think I've ever even considered trying to do something so risky, but the payoff seems to be working so far. Especially since the damage done to this thing means I just need to shape the excess energy to do what I want."

"You dare…?!" Jellal once more reached a pinnacle state of anger, as Sora's form shifted to one of pure purple energy.

"No freaking way!" Natsu voiced the shock of both himself and Erza, as they realized what Sora had done, as the form of the mage rose up above the roof and expanded, the legs shifting to something of a tail that connected to the tower.

"You wanted this tower to summon your god?" Once the head was at the same height as Jellal's the figure had a shape similar to a purple genie, large arms and a single rainbow-colored eye emitting energy. "Well now I'm the god of this tower. And I say, you better pray for mercy. Because you won't get any from me!"

Jellal roared in fury as the two forms began to collide with each other at high speeds, each a blur of light and magic as they charged at each other, breaking away and creating shockwaves at each impact. After a few dozen hits that didn't faze each other in the slightest, Sora backed off and brought each of his hands up, one hand red and the other blue, while taking a deep breath. When he released it, he held his hands parallel and in front of his mouth, creating a massive rushing cloud of steam that swept up Jellal and obscured him from sight.

When he raced out of the cloud, his skin was flushed and sweaty, his breath a little uneven from the temperature and humidity making it difficult to breathe. And in a flash, a bright purple fist collided into his chest and sent him flying down towards the sea, the energy form chasing after him.

As Jellal righted himself, he used his magic to generate a series of light magic projectiles that the energy form swerved around, before the two began another slugfest that neither gained an upper hand in. Sora then backed up again, and aimed a cyan and a blue hand at Jellal, but the mage in question not feeling any magic aimed at him.

Then he heard the sea begin to surge.

Looking back, he barely saw the large maw of a serpentine dragon formed from seawater, before the jaw closed down with him inside. The blue-eyed water dragon then surged into the water, moving at high speeds and frequently changing direction, not letting Jellal keep his bearings while trying to wear him out, the energy form moving their arms to guide the magically made beast.

Meanwhile, back at the top of the tower, the others watched the scene in awe of what was going on. "No freaking way!" Natsu was practically having his jaw bounce along the floor from what he was seeing Sora do, and Simon was smirking slightly himself.

"Yeah, I'll admit, I didn't think he would be able to do this. He managed to get in touch with me shortly after he began to exert his will on the tower. He is truly surpassing expectations."

"Thanks." They all looked behind them, surprised to see Sora as he normally looks walking up to them, though a bit slowly. "Though the idea to even attempt this came from Lucy. Guess the answer to her question was "Yes, I can hijack this tower and turn it against Jellal"." Sora smirked a little at that. "Even if it's just barely from the low amount of magic I got left. This thing is MASSIVE after all."

Natsu ran up to him and went to put a hand on his shoulder. "Hey, man! How bad is-?" Natsu didn't finish his question as his hand passed RIGHT THROUGH SORA and the momentum had him crashing onto the ground. Erza and Natsu then looked at him with wide eyes as Sora chuckled lightly, his form flickering like a projection.

"Yeah, not really standing in front of you. Just using a projection to chat with you guys, and something similar to fight Jellal. Though to be honest, I don't think I have too much time left before either A, he finds out and starts properly fighting back or B, I lose control of the energy and can't hold him back any more. This thing is too massive for me to completely control, and my energy is too low to be able to do this forever. Hell, part of my focus is in trying to keep the energy in this thing from going haywire and blowing sky-high!"

"Then you need to get out of here!" Sora turned to Erza as she called out to him, leaning on Simon's shoulder from where he sat in order to help her stand. "You need to get yourself and the others as far away from this tower as fast as you can!"

Sora raised a brow at her, before glancing at Natsu. "Is she STILL going on about this shit?!" Natsu shrugged in affirmation, before Sora looked back at Erza. "Listen here, Erza! The first time you told me to leave, I told you that I wouldn't let anything happen to my new family, and the second time I relented because I knew I didn't have the strength to help you anymore. Now, I have something I can do, and the means to do it. You tell me what that means I'm going to do!"

Erza grit her teeth, seeing his point, but still tried to plead with him. "Be that as it may, you just said you couldn't do this for long!"

"Well yeah, I'm doing three things at once other than talking to you guys. One, I'm keeping this place stable. Two, I'm distracting Jellal. Three, I've been slowly healing you guys since I started fighting him." Erza and Natsu finally looked beneath themselves to see the ground beneath them a soft yellow, just like it was for Simon. "The way this place is leaking magic makes the last two easier, since I just have to make the excess take the form I want, filtering it all through the gem-types I've got. But it still isn't enough to take Jellal down. Which is why I plan on doing a fourth thing as well."

Natsu and Erza shared a confused glance, before they looked back at Sora's projection, Natsu asking for them. "Uh, what else CAN you do right now?"

Sora gained a massive grin as he held his hand out to Natsu, palm facing the ground. The floor beneath his hand then glowed like the rainbow. "I can give you, one HELL of a meal!" Ethereal blue flames then erupted from where the glow came from, surging wildly in barely contained energy that came directly from the Etherion blast. "So I hope you're hungry, because I want you to be VERY angry, and VERY destructive."

Natsu looked at the flames for a few seconds… then grinned wolfishly.

Back with the fight, Jellal just burst free from the water dragon and destroyed it, before charging at the energy form, firing light projectiles as he went. Sora dodged most of them, and stopped what he couldn't with barriers, but the projectiles managed to distract him long enough for Jellal to get a direct hit in, knocking the form back and causing it to flicker, Jellal's eyes narrowing as he observed this.

Recovering, Sora brought his hands together and held them out at him, palms outward as a magic circle appeared, a large number of purple fists flying out and going after the blue-haired wizard. Jellal did as Sora had before, but gaining distance as he did so, so he wouldn't get blindsided. When another water dragon surged up and threatened to swallow him again, he simply flew upwards, making the dragon surge upwards in pursuit of its prey. After gaining some height, he faced the water construct and waved his fingers about, causing magic circles appear in the sky in the form of the Big Dipper constellation. "Grand Chariot!" A powerful surge of magic the shot down and completely destroyed the water dragon, leaving the energy construct Sora created going after him.

Jellal simply smirked as he aimed his next spell a little way behind him, striking the wall of the tower with a smaller magic bolt. But it proved his hypothesis as the energy form flickered and recoiled from the blast. "As I thought. You aren't really here."

Sora's energy form glared at Jellal. "Depends on what you mean by "here". I'm still on the island, but you'd be right in thinking I'm not directly in front of you…"

"You're using the tower to manifest a projection to fight me. Which means I don't need to fight you…" Jellal then raised a hand to the tower as a magic circle appeared in front of his hand. "I just need to find your REAL body, and destroy it while it's weak!"

Sora's energy form seemed to narrow his eye, before he shrugged. "I suppose so. But then, what are you planning for him?" He then pointed up, just as Jellal started to feel a strong heat, different from everything else he'd felt today so far.

Looking up, he was once more shocked, this time at the fact that Natsu was racing down at him, emitting powerful flames from his fists and feet to act as propulsion as his face held a look of roaring fury. But what truly caught Jellal's attention was the appearance of scales on his skin, and that his teeth now seemed to have pronounced fangs in them.

But he didn't have time to think about it as while he was distracted, Sora had wrapped the arms of his energy form around Jellal and immediately pulled him upwards to meet Natsu's fists head-on! Jellal tried to separate himself, but Sora only let go when Natsu was inches away from punching him, hitting Jellal with enough explosive power to send him flying back into the sea.

Immediately after the punch, Sora used his power to gather the winds around Natsu to keep him in the air, glad that Natsu didn't consider the wind a means of transport. "So, how do you feel?"

Natsu stared at where Jellal went with a hard look. "Like punching someone's face in!" He growled.

Sora nodded. "Well, you're definitely on the right track to doing so. I'll focus on keeping you airborne and supporting your attacks. You just focus on hitting him when you can, as hard as you can."

"… So, just another day with Fairy Tail?" Natsu was grinning like an animal at that while Sora chuckled, Jellal emerging from the water before he could respond and charging after them.

And so they fought. Sora focused on keeping Jellal off balance and keeping Natsu away from the most damaging attacks, while the Fire mage focused solely on destroying Jellal, firing flames from his feet to amplify his speed and power while in the air, now powerful enough for them to affect Jellal, as well as helping him keep up with Jellal's speed with his Meteor spell active. Each time Jellal dodged or avoided an attack from Natsu, Sora would throw in a few shots to knock him off balance and anger him. Jellal would retaliate in response, only for Natsu to hit him with a more powerful hit than the one he blocked. Jellal would fire a series of powerful magic projectiles, but Sora would use the wind to move Natsu around and away from the shots, blocking what he couldn't outmaneuver with a purple barrier, before launching Natsu at Jellal at high speeds for him to ram his head, fist, or leg into him.

After a couple of minutes of this, Jellal Let out a cry and magic surged off of him, knocking Natsu back at Sora's projection, as the crazed mage shot upwards and above the tower. "Impossible! I cannot be defeated! I will create a land of freedom!" Sora shot up after him, Natsu in tow, as Jellal looked at them all in fury, Erza and Simon watching the fight from the top of the tower. "Zeref called to me softly, through the pain and the fear. He asked me if I wanted true freedom! That's right, I'm the only one who can feel Zeref's presence! I'm the chosen one! Together with Zeref, I will create a nation of true freedom!"

"Like hell you can do that by stealing other people's freedom!" Natsu called out in response.

"All you accomplish is doing to others what they did to you! An endless cycle of pain and misery!" Sora supported.

"The will to change the world," Jellal persisted as he began to fire more projectiles. "that alone is enough to turn the wheels of history!" Sora and Natsu each worked to avoid the blasts, Sora going so far as to create a barrier for Erza and Simon for the few stray shots that went their way. "Why can you fools not understand that?!" He then formed a large, and familiar magic circle in the air, everyone looking in shock at the spell he was about to throw at them.

"Abyss Break?!" Erza looked at him in disbelief of how far he was about to go, the spell strong enough to destroy the tower as well! "Are you trying to take down the whole tower?!"

"Just give me another 8 years." He spoke arrogantly. "No, this time I'll build it in 5 years. Zeref, just wait a little longer." All of a sudden, a twinge of pain shot through him, and he remembered the injury Erza inflicted on him earlier, before the Etherion hit. In that moment, he reflexively curled up and the spell faded to nothing.

Seeing their chance, Sora let his hand and arm expand even larger, and Natsu kneeled on the palm. As Sora's hand charged purple, red, and cyan colors, Natsu's feet began to emit intense flames. All at once, Sora chucked Natsu as hard as he could, discharging the energy he was building up at the same time Natsu kicked off of his hand with everything he had, the pink-haired mage turning into a blazing blur at the speed. "You're never gonna find freedom!" Natsu declared as he was being fired, flames gathering around him that took the shape of a soaring dragon. "There's no freedom for a guy tied down by some stupid ghost!"

Jellal watched unmoving, knowing from a glance that there was nothing he could do to prevent what was about to happen, as a dragon of fire bore down on him…

"Fire Dragon's Sword Horn!" As Natsu's skull rammed into Jellal's midsection, his momentum didn't die down in the least as they shot up far above the clouds, the impact and speed knocking the wind out of Jellal's chest as he was unable to resist.

As they reached the zenith of their ascent, Natsu unleashed as series of other attacks.

"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist! Talon! Wing Attack! ROOOAAAAARRR!" As his roar sent him back towards the ground, Natsu rammed back into him with flames firing from his hands and feet, sending them both back towards the tower at high speeds.

As Sora saw them both come back into view, he focused his entire projection to rise up and turn into a massive fist, and launched it towards the pair. As Jellal was slammed from both sides, he near instantly passed out from the power behind both forces of hijacked tower and powered-up dragon slayer. A second later, the energy Sora was using dissipated completely and Natsu's fist pushed him forth while it blazed even more, driving Jellal into the tower, creating a powerful impact that shook the entire structure and making pieces of it fall off all over the place.

As the smoke cleared, Jellal lay impacted in a small crater in the tower, the token that marked him as a wizard saint in the guise of Siegrain bouncing away along the floor. A second later, Natsu landed hard on the ground, slowly standing up in victory, both Erza and Simon looking at him in awe. 'So this is Natsu's true power… This, is a Dragon Slayer.' Erza thought in awe of him, before she cast a look of the floor she sat upon, still glowing a slight yellow, even if it had dimmed somewhat. 'And to think, Sora was capable of such a feat… This much power at his fingertips, and he still kept himself sane…' Looking up again, she saw a shaky image of Sora appear, a hand on Natsu's shoulder.

'They actually defeated Jellal…' The two then cast a glance over at her, before flashing her grins of victory, Erza looking at them both in relief, pride, and gratitude. 'The battle I have been fighting these long eight years is finally over.' She then looked at the ground with a smile of peace. 'Everyone is truly free now…'

Just then, Natsu's energy began to drop and he fell to his knees, Sora's image flickering more and more, worrying Erza about their condition and running to them. "Natsu! Sora!" By the time she reached them, Sora's image had dissipated, and she could only catch Natsu as he began to fall forward. Looking around, she was relieved after Sora spoke up through the tower.

"All good Erza, I'm still here. Just don't have enough control or energy for the images. I'm just gonna focus on holding this thing together for now, okay?"

Erza smiled with relief, hugging Natsu close while placing a hand on the crystal floor, the scale markings starting to fade from Natsu's skin. "You both are absolutely incredible… Really…" Even Simon cracked a warm smile at the scene, just as grateful to the two mages who saved them from their nightmare.

Suddenly, the tower beneath them began to shine with ethereal light as the tower began to tremble, Simon and Erza looking all about in fear of what that meant.

Running to the edge of the platform, Simon watched as magic surged off from the sides of the tower, the energy alone enough to level a city! He then turned his gaze back to the middle of the tower. "Sora! What's happening?!" No response. "Sora!"

"Y-Yeah, hold on! It's taking ev-everything I g-got to hold it like it is!" Another surge of magic busted through. "SHIT! Listen, I've got an e-escape path figured out! Follow the yellow rock road!" A portion of the floor then lit up yellow and led towards one of the tunnels the fighting has created. "Get moving! I'll direct the e-energy as best I can, b-but I need you to keep moving no m-m-matter wh-what!"

Erza had already pulled Natsu up and had his arm over her shoulder, Simon running over to help her move. They quickly followed the path Sora set, avoiding energy surges at his directions and trying not to fall with the path they were trying to take. She quickly cast her gaze across the tower. "What about you?! You can't possibly be safe like this!" No response once again. "Sora, answer me! SORA!"

As Erza was distracted, another surge hit, her and the others thrown off their feet with Simon and Natsu landing nearby. As Erza struggled to her knees, she spotted Natsu and Simon on the ground, both of them knocked out by the blast. She then looked around at the damage the tower was doing to itself.

'With so much magic energy, the lacrima cannot hold its form and contain the power within. This tower is warping itself from the pressure… Its destructive power must be unfathomable… And with Sora's current condition, he must be completely unable to hold it any more… Even if we get outside, we'll still be caught in the blast radius…'

The tower continued to crumble around her as she came to understand the situation. Finally, she punched the ground beneath her. "Damn! Is this the end?!" She then turned to look at the fallen forms of Natsu and Simon, remembering why she fights in the first place, and began to stand in determination. 'No, I can't give up.' She then looked at them again. 'It's my turn to save you, Natsu, Simon…' She then cast her gaze around the tower itself. 'And you as well, Sora…'

A surge of power then shot up next to her like a geyser, Erza holding her arms to shield herself as she kept her distance from it. 'But it's impossible to avert it… What do I do?!' At that moment, she recalled what Jellal said back when he had captured her with the Bind Snake, and how he intended to merge her body with the lacrima.

'Merge?!' She then looked at a wall of lacrima that stood beside her, still connected to the tower. 'Would merging with the Etherion let me control this energy and prevent it from exploding?!' She then slowly reached out a hand and placed it on the surface of the lacrima beside her. 'This is our only chance!' Slowly, the lacrima bent under her touch, before it swallowed up her hand, setting every nerve in her hand on fire! "AAAGH!". Erza let out a sound of pain and discomfort, but shoved away her agony from her mind and began to push herself further in. 'Good! The lacrima still accepts me!'

At that moment, Natsu slowly woke up, and looked at Erza's form in confusion. Slowly getting up, he utters her name. "Erza…"

Stopping in shock at her name, she turned to look at him in shock. "Natsu?!"

"Wh-What are you doing, Erza? Your body's going into the lacrima…"

"This is the only way to stop the Etherion."

"Stop the Etherion…?" Another piece of the tower detonated, Natsu flinching at the sound and tremors being caused by it as he looked above and around them.

"That's right. Look around us. The Etherion is out of control and will destroy the tower in an enormous explosion any minute now!"

"What?! B-But I thought Sora was holding this place together!"

"He hasn't been able to communicate properly for a while now. I think it got too much for him to get a handle on… But if I can merge with the Etherion and restrain it…!"

"Are you insane?! If you do that, you'll…!" Erza let out a cry of pain as the Etherion set her nerves on fire, Natsu getting up and moving towards her at that. "Erza!" However, the exhaustion he felt had him struggling to walk, and quickly crashed to the ground after a few feet.

"Don't worry about a thing. I _will_ stop it!" By now, she had her entire right arm inside the lacrima.

"Stop!"

Soon, Erza was almost completely inside the lacrima, all that remained were her chest and her head, causing her to cry out from how the energies of the magic sent fire and lightning through every nerve it had from her, getting Natsu to try to get to her once more. "Stop! Erza!" Soon, he had made it to where he was at the base of the portion she was being absorbed by.

Erza looked down at him from where her head still remained. "Natsu…" She then reached out a hand from within the Etherion and cupped his cheek, a kind smile on her face. "I can't live without Fairy Tail… I can't even imagine a world without my friends… That's how important all of you are to me…"

Natsu could only stare at her, disbelief clear in his eyes. "Erza…"

Titania continued to smile softly, before pulling her hand back. "If I can save you all, I won't hesitate for even a moment." She closed her eyes as the Etherion began to converge towards her face. "I will gladly…" But before she could finish, she felt something push her out from within the lacrima and she landed beside Natsu, surprise evident on her face as well as his.

'What?! But, it was just accepting me! Why did it…?' Turning to look, both she and Natsu saw an arm had pushed out of the lacrima…

And that it had a familiar crystal gauntlet covering it…

Erza's eyes widened in shock with Natsu's as a head slowly emerged from the wall. "No…!"

Sora's strained smile met them as his head fully emerged, his crystal eye free from the usual illusion and flaring wildly with magic. "Wh-What the hell, Erza? Lacrimas are my thing, not yours. You don't see me taking some of your armors and trying them on, do you?"

""SORA?!""

The crystal mage smirked at them both as they shouted his name simultaneously. "Me."

Natsu immediately tried to stand to pull his friend out, but his legs wouldn't lift him up. "S-Sora! What are you doing in there?!"

"How else did you think I was planning to hijack control of this tower?" He then cast a look around the place. "I'm good, but even on a good day I would have trouble making something this big do what I want." He then looked at them with a face that tried to make light of the situation. "Unless, I made it no different than breathing…"

Erza's eyes widened to their limits. "No… you merged with the tower upon getting back?!"

Sora grimaced as the sensation of flames and lightning surged through his veins again for at least the dozenth- 'or, wait, was it the hundredth already?'-time, before looking back at them. "Something like that…" He then had a bit of a coughing fit, and a small, ethereal blue crystal came out of his mouth and bounced on the ground, getting Sora to stare at in in light surprise. "… Huh. That's new."

Erza then stood up shakily as she tried to grab his arm, but he pulled it back in too quickly for her, and she could no longer enter the lacrima herself. "You fool! Do you have any idea what this will do to you?!"

"Did you?" Erza stopped at his words, the serious look on his face keeping her frozen. "I was already merged with the tower when you began to attempt it, and I heard every word you said, but the strain of holding this place together was too much for me to reply anymore. Which just so happens to be why I said "don't stop no matter what". So, I listened, and when I realized why you were trying it, I moved myself to stop you from doing it."

"I was trying to protect everyone!"

"By devastating them?! If you can't live without the people you care about, then don't you think the rest of the guild feels the same?!" Erza pulled back as if his words physically struck her, but he kept shouting. "Tell me Erza! What would we feel if we lost someone as dear to us all as you, one of the kindest people in the entire guild?! We would be miserable! I've only known you and the rest for some weeks now, but even I can say that losing you would shatter me! How would everyone else feel when they've known you for years?!"

Erza was stock still, his words echoing in her heart. "The only people who are willing to die for their loved ones, are too afraid of failing to protect them! If you truly care for the people you hold in your heart, THEN YOU LIVE FOR THEM! You fight and struggle every inch of the fight, and tell the world and fate itself not to mess WITH THE ONES YOU CARE FOR!" Sora then returned a small smile to his face. "So Erza… you need to get out of here, and live…"

Those words felt like a cord of finality for Erza and Natsu, and they each pushed their arms into the lacrima, Erza trying to get in and pull Sora out, while Natsu pounded away at it. "But what about you?!" "We can't just leave you to die like this!"

"Didn't you guys hear me?" At the teasing tone he was using, they both stopped and looked at the devilish smirk on his face, barely showing a mere hint of the pain he was feeling. "I just said that you don't die for your friends, but that you live for them. That's why, I'm going to face this thing, kick its metaphorical ass, then meet you all at the beach back at the resort in time for a victory party! You guys just need to focus on getting out of here, and enjoying the show…"

They each looked at him in shock, but Sora could still see the looks of hesitation in their eyes, before letting out a noise of impatience. "Urgh, you aren't moving fast enough!" He then looked behind them. "Hurry up and get them to the escape point!"

Suddenly, both Erza and Natsu felt a large arm wrap around their midsections and lifting them up. Surprised, they looked up at Simon, who had recovered a few moments ago and heard everything Sora had said, a resolute look on his face. "Which way?"

"Just keep going through the tunnel on your left! I left something for you guys to use to get out of here more easily, now hurry the hell up!"

Simon nodded, and turned running with Natsu and Erza under his arms, both too weak to do anything other than pointlessly try to struggle out of the grip and look at Sora, calling out his name. Within a few seconds, they were now out of sight and Sora let a small smile readorn his face. "Good. That takes care of that part. Now then," he then looked back up at the ceiling of the chamber, as it was beginning to crumble. "time to take another swim." He then pulled his head back under the lacrima, and let himself drift back inside, feeling the energies of the Etherion flow through and around him, willing it to do as he wished.

Even as it threatened to tear him apart.

Outside, everyone in Juvia's water bubble watched as the Tower began to glow an ethereal light, before firing it straight into the heavens. At first, they thought it was exploding, but they soon realized that it was instead discharging the energies straight into the clouds, causing no harm and slowly losing the terrifying amount of power within it.

As the energy finally faded away and the tower stopped glowing, it began to crumble and crash into the water, the pieces causing the water and wind to stir chaotically, Juvia struggling to hold the bubble in her current condition. As it all began to calm down again, everyone looked out over the sea, looking for some sign that their friends had made it out alive.

"Over there!" At Lucy's call, everyone turned their attention to something moving through the water towards them. As it got closer, they recognized it as a small boat slightly larger than the one that brought the fairies to the tower, seemingly made from sapphire, with Simon standing in the middle with his arms spread over both lacrima motors.

When he got close enough, Juvia moved them all onto the boat and Simon relaxed his arms, taking a seat as they all took note of who was there. They were glad to see Erza and Natsu, despite the second being completely motion sick, but the forlorn look on Erza's face and the regretful one on Simon's made them wonder what was wrong. Then they realized it.

Sora was nowhere to be seen.

* * *

After spending an hour searching the waters, none of them could find a trace of Sora's whereabouts, and Simon finally convinced them that they should get to shore and continue the search tomorrow. So they made their way back in silence, none of them making a sound any louder than Natsu being seasick, or a soft sniffling of tears at not knowing what became of the one who saved their lives.

Slowly, the beach came into view, but none of them felt overjoyed about it. Remembering Sora's words, Erza, still in what she called her Clear Heart Clothing, listlessly looked from one end of the beach to the other, half-heartedly hoping to see the crystal mage ready to greet them with a mischievous look on his face. But she saw nothing but the beach, the trees that ran along it, and the rocks that piled up in some areas that made them ideal for climbing. One even looked slightly pretty as it was on its own and reflected the moonlight…

'… wait… reflecting…?' Erza then shot up, startling the others as she focused her gaze on the reflective rock, trying to make out details in the night, and after a few moments, she saw it wasn't just a rock…

It was a large crystal.

Erza then quickly moved to one of the propulsion lacrima, commanding Simon to move the other as she needed, and sped the boat Sora made for them as fast as it could, everyone slowly seeing what she saw. Once the boat entered the shallows, Erza had bounded out of the boat and landed on the sand, running to the crystal that had created a path in the sand as it had crashed onto shore. Once she was close enough, she placed both hands on the crystal and pressed her face against it, trying to see inside it in the dim lighting, and could just barely see a faint shape within… and a faint multi-colored glow in the center of it.

Eyes widening in hope, she summoned a sword and began to hack at the crystal, trying desperately to open it as soon as she could, hoping to prove this was what she thought it was as everyone got close. "Everyone, help me!" At Erza's command, everyone did what they could to chip and break away as much of the crystal as they could without completely destroying it, each bit that broke off disappearing as it turned into magic energy.

After a while of this, a piece of crystal fell away to reveal a hand, Erza dropping her sword to reach for it, trying to find a pulse. The relief she felt, when not only did she find one but the hand squeezed her back, left her speechless with joy as tears formed in her left eye.

"He's alive!" She called out, grabbed her sword again and redoubling her efforts with one hand, the other not letting go of his. "Hurry, we have to get him out of there!"

Everyone worked even harder at that, using pickaxes Gray made to chip him out of there as fast as they could. After a few more moments, Erza felt the hand she was holding tighten its grip, before the glow within the crystal increased, getting everyone to pause for a moment as it got their attention. Soon, the glow shifted across what was left of the crystal, before it all scattered into light, revealing Sora on the sand, his hand still trapped in Erza's.

Everyone simply looked at him in silence, as the glow still coming from his chest began to dim and he slowly opened his eyes. His eyes-the crystal one still glowing faintly-looked at everyone as they began to crowd around him. After a few moments, he grinned like an idiot. "So… am I late… for the party?"

Trembling, Erza pulled him into a bone crushing hug, crying softly as he cried out in protest. "Owowow, sore all over, bruising everywhere! Erza, please! Let up a little!" But she only hugged tighter, increasing his pain in a small sort of revenge for worrying her like that. All around them, their friends were crying and cheering in joy, happy that he made it out as well even as he was yelling from the crushing hug.

"Thank you…" Sora stopped his protests as he heard Erza's words whispered in his ear. "You're right… I can't trade my life for those of my friends… to protect their happiness, I have to live for them… Sora… Thank you…"

Sora blinked at her words, and decided to put up with the discomfort a while longer with a smile. "You're welcome."

Erza wouldn't realize it until later, but as she held him tightly, her right eye had cried for the first time in eight long years…

* * *

A/N: And with that, the battle at the Tower of Heaven is concluded! I will admit, having Sora hijack the Tower like that is something I had planned on as soon as I decided he could mess with Lacrima. Was very much looking forward to writing this chapter when the thought entered my head. Hope everyone enjoyed what I envisioned here.

Anyway, the next chapter will be the wrap up for this arc, as well as everyone's return to seeing the new guild hall. I hope you all look forward to it, and please leave a review so I know how I did as well as leaving a fav or follow if you haven't already. Here's to hoping I can get the next chapter out soon! Later!


	13. Goodbye Past, Hello Future!

A/N: Hey, sorry for the wait. Honestly I have had this chapter ready for months but I have been trying to work on my other story as well. After some consideration, I decided to put Taking Flight on hold for a bit since I have hit a bit of a roadblock trying to figure out the plot of the story for the future. So, seeing as I have some of this story ready and raring to go I will go ahead and start working on it again. So, some Review Responses before moving on with the story.

Piemaster981: Glad you enjoyed the final battle with Jellal! I have honestly been hoping to work on this part since I came up with the concept for my OC Sora and am glad it was well received.

ZooFan: Glad you share my sentiment about Simon. I too was pissed when he wound up dying and simply had to correct that.

pokeheroaadyn: Glad you love the story! As for Kagura… Don't know yet but I will cross that bridge when I get to it.

* * *

3 days later, Sora lay in a bed at the resort, leaning against the headboard and with bandages over numerous parts of his body, watching Natsu snore away in his own bed with his own bandages. "Wow. He can really snore, can't he?"

"Is he gonna be okay?" Gray asked from the table he, Lucy, and Erza sat at in the room, each of them showing similar injuries, and Happy sitting on the table itself.

"Seriously, he's been asleep for three days straight now…" Lucy looked at the sleeping fire mage in exasperation.

Sora smirked at Natsu's sleeping form. "I filtered the energy as best I could, but it was still nearly pure Etherion energy. The fire in it helped him consume it, but I guess I wasn't able to completely prevent side effects…"

"Man, eating Etherion like that… The guy really is a freak, isn't he?"

Gray's words surprisingly got a reaction out of Natsu as he bolted upright with an angry look on his face as he shouted. "What did you just call me, Gray?!"

Happy flew over by Natsu in happiness. "He's awake!" Natsu's face then dropped, before he fell back and started sleeping again like nothing happened, shocking Happy. "He's asleep!"

"Don't wake up if you don't want to pick a fight!" Gray cried out in anger.

Sora chuckled. "All in favor of making Gray the one who wakes Natsu up in an emergency, say aye!"

"Aye!" "Oh don't you two start!"

Lucy laughed happily at the boys' antics, while Erza looked at the table with a small smile. "I caused you all so much trouble during this latest incident…"

Lucy turned to her comfortingly. "You've said that so many times already…"

"Think of it this way, Erza." The red-head looked at Sora's smirk as he spoke. "At least you didn't attack any of us when you ran into us." Sora raised a brow in affirmation, reminding them all how they met him.

Erza blinked at him, then let her smile grow. "I suppose so…" A thought then occurred to her, and she turned to Gray. "Come to think of it, where did she go?"

"Oh, Juvia? She already went back. Said something about wanting to join Fairy Tail as soon as possible."

"I see…" Erza gained a look of thought at that, while Sora grinned.

"Gotta say, sounds like it'll be interesting with her in the guild. A former elite member of a once rival guild, now a member of Fairy Tail? The guild already has a reputation, but this means we'll now be known as willing to recruit former enemies. People will probably love the guild even more now, despite how it still destroys stuff every now and then."

As everyone made sounds of agreement, Erza gained a confident look on her face, and stood up. "Very true. Although, I have to ask something." Sora looked at her curiously, wary of the look on her face which seemed to hold a mix of amusement and accusation. "How exactly did you say you got that new element again?"

Sora stiffened in alarm at that, while the other conscious mages looked at him as well, expecting an answer. "A-ah, that… Right. Okay then…" Sora then took a deep breath to calm himself down before explaining. "Well, after wandering around the game floor that night, I stumbled upon a game with a… unique, grand prize. That prize happened to be a Star Prism. I asked how they got their hands on it, and apparently the owner had won it in an Auction. I'm guessing they thought it would be a good way to invite high-priced gamblers and collectors to the resort. I tried to win it for a bit before stopping myself for a break. I had every intention of winning it fair and square, I promise you."

"And then?"

"Well, Jellal and your brainwashed friends happened and I thought it would be idea to go in with as much power as I could muster for your rescue and the butt kicking of the enemy. I swear I only did it because of the situation and I will give them a new Prism for free once I can."

Erza looked at him for a few moments, before nodding her head with a slight smile. "Alright then, I believe you."

Sora sighed in relief at that, before Gray looked at him in curiosity. "But the one time we saw you using a Prism it took you about 10-15 minutes, didn't it? You were gone for no more than 5 when we all followed Natsu to the docks."

"You saw me using the Prism PROPERLY that time." Sora explained. "It's supposed to take that long at the minimum so that the body can properly acclimate to the new element properly with less chance of it backfiring. It could be done in less time and with less stress, but from what I've learned it is supposed to go the way I showed you guys, not the rush job I did just before we set out over the water." Sora looked away with a slight grimace at that. "Besides, it seems to have backfired against me because of that…"

"Backfired?" Lucy asked in confusion, but Sora waved it off.

"Don't worry about it now. I have no intention of needing my magic before we return to the guild, so it should be fine."

That seemed to pacify the others as they didn't press him further. Erza then got up from her seat. "I'm going to go check on the others. I'll be by soon." As everyone bid her well, she left the room.

After a few moments, Sora let out a sigh, catching the attention of the other three. "Sora? Is something wrong?"

At Lucy's question, Sora looked at the foot of the bed. "I wouldn't put it like that. More like, I'm not sure how to address something with her…" He then looked at them. "What I'm about to tell you, I'm going to ask you not speak to her about until I know how to tell her."

Gray leaned forward in his chair as they all paid attention to him. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about how I nearly didn't make it." As their eyes widened, he elaborated. "The power in that tower nearly tore me apart. Before it could though, I felt something pull me away from it, taking the worst of the damage themselves. It gave me the chance I needed to create my escape pod and survive the experience."

"What was it?" Happy asked in a quiet voice, all of them wanting to know his answer to it.

Sora frowned as he looked at the foot of the bed. "I didn't recognize it as it protected me, but I did catch one thing, a promise it asked me to keep. The voice it used shocked me, especially with the words they used. I heard just 5 words, but that was all I needed to be certain about the intentions of the one who said them…" He then stared at them, certain of what he heard and what he was about to tell them.

"I heard, "Please, take care of her", in Jellal's voice."

They were shocked into silence, none of them able to comment for several minutes. After a while, Lucy found her voice first. "How… why would he…?"

Sora shook his head. "I've got a hunch… Erza said that when they were little, he was actually a good and righteous person. Then something… possessed him, into being the person we encountered. Maybe, after being beaten… the person he used to be came back to the surface, free of the ghost of Zeref… And he merged himself with the tower as well, saving my life and helping me to discharge the tower's energies." He then closed his eyes with a shrug. "Then again, I could just be going crazy. Wouldn't be the first time I thought so of myself."

"No…" He looked up at Lucy, a look of thought on her face. "It does make a sort of sense… But do you really want to keep this from Erza?"

"Not particularly. I just don't know how to tell her. We're talking about someone she used to be incredibly close to, and then tried to sacrifice her after 8 years of being crazy. I have no idea how she would take this news. And I especially don't want to bring this up in front of Simon and the rest. Erza is typically a forgiving person, but I don't think they would ever forgive Jellal for what he put them through…"

"You got a point there…" Gray said, as they all thought about the information through Natsu's snoring. After some time, they decided to let it rest for now and enjoy the rest of their vacation, interrupted as it was by the whole fiasco.

Later that evening, after Natsu had recovered enough to actually walk around, both groups gathered together to enjoy dinner, Natsu and Gray digging in like they hadn't eaten in weeks, while everyone else ate more calmly, Milliana utterly infatuated by Happy's presence and played with him. Sho was looking at some of the food options questioningly, eliciting Gray and Lucy to work together to try and get him to try everything, Gray going so far as to shove a piece of meat in his mouth as Lucy held a plate of food right next to them, Wally watching uneasily. Natsu and Sora meanwhile used what magic they had recovered to put on a bit of a show, Natsu spewing fires above the table as Sora had some of his tops making small pillars of water dance across the table, making Erza, Happy, Milliana, and Simon watch in awe. The dinner continued with similar events occurring here and there, everyone enjoying the peace after the chaos of the Tower.

* * *

Later that evening, Sora was sitting in a chair before the door that led to the balcony of his room with a look of concentration on his face, and a top rotating slowly in the middle of the balcony. With a nervous gulp, Sora willed the top to spin slightly faster, and it did so as wisps of air moved around it. He tried to make it go just a bit more, but it kept increasing its speed without his urging and rapidly getting faster.

"Shit, shit, SHIT!" Sora tried to will it to stop completely but his control was quickly deteriorating and the top kept getting faster, wind surging around it more and more. He eventually just made the thing fling itself off the patio and a mere second later it burst with a powerful gust of wind. Even as far away as it was, it still knocked him away from the door and over the chair, landing on his back in the middle of his room. "GAGH!?"

After a few moments, he slowly sat himself up. "Urgh, owowow…" Looking back at the patio, Sora grimaced. "Man, how the hell do I reign this one in? I'm already having a hard time trying to keep Amethyst from blowing up all the time, but Zircon is messing with my Element manipulation!" Sora then turned his gaze over to where he was practicing with some of his more regular tops and looked at the damage with disdain.

Curtains had been soaked, carpets had been burned, the mirror had helped to nearly blind him, and don't even get him started on the dresser and bed! This was one of those times he was glad he was funded enough to be able to pay for the damages. "Man, it was way too early to access a new Prism. What the hell was I thinking?!… Okay, probably wasn't thinking at all since Erza was kidnapped, but still!"

Slowly getting up, he righted the chair he was using and moved it back in front of the patio. "Until I can gain control over this damn wind element, I'm going to be stuck with constructs for a while. Unless of course I'm fine with reckless destruction, but we have Natsu and Gray for that." He then sat back down in the chair and held his arm out. "Okay, take 13."

At that moment, the door to his room burst open, and Sora turned to see Lucy looking at him. "Erza says it's time!"

Sora blinked, then quickly stood up and ran to the desk and grabbed a few items he made earlier. "Lead the way!"

* * *

"Can we really make a life for ourselves in the outside world?" Wally asked the other three as they readied a boat by the beach. Across the water, they could see the resort where Erza and the rest were staying, but their focus was mostly on the entrance to the bay, where they intended to sail away to start new lives.

Milliana made a cat-like sound of nervousness, as Sho reassured them. "We have to! We can't burden Nee-san anymore."

"She won't be happy about leaving like this…" Simon stated as he hefted a bundle of supplies into the boat. "But you're right. It's time for us to stop relying on her."

"There you are!" Everyone jumped a little at the reprimanding voice, and turned in varying amounts of surprise as they saw Erza walking down the beach at them.

"Nee-san!" Erza then walked up a little closer to their boat, Sho, Wally and Milliana turning to look away from her while Simon looked at her without hesitation, despite some sadness as he let Sho talk for them. "We grew up inside that tower. There's so much we don't understand and feel unsure about… So we want to see this outside world for ourselves!" Sho stood straight with resolve as he clenched his fists, speaking with more strength than Erza ever remembers him having. "We don't want to live our lives dependent on others anymore… or our lives for someone else anymore!"

Sho then turned to look at her, a look of firm, yet satisfied resolve on his face, soon mirrored by the other three. "We want to live for ourselves now and discover our dreams on our own! That's the freedom we seek!"

Simon placed a hand on Sho's shoulder proudly, before looking back at Erza. "And so, we're afraid we'll need to decline your invitation to Fairy Tail for now, Erza. We hope you understand."

Erza closed her eyes in silence, face betraying nothing. After a few moments, she opened her eyes with a small smile. "With that much determination, I'm sure you four can do anything." She the tilted her head upwards, looking at them all. "I feel relieved now." Then, the light of her magic covered her, before revealing her in ceremonial looking armor, a lance in hand that bore a red flag and the symbol of Fairy Tail on it. "But there are three rules people who leave Fairy Tail must abide by! Listen well!"

Everyone looked at her baffled. "Hold on! Leave? We haven't even joined!" Wally exclaimed.

"First! You must never reveal personal information detrimental to Fairy Tail for as long as you live! Second! You must never make unauthorized contact with any past clients for personal gain! Third! Even if our paths stray, you must live your lives to the fullest!" All four of them froze in shock at the last one, starting to realize what she was doing. "You must never consider your lives insignificant!" All five of them had tears in their eyes at this point, Erza's old friends watching her transfixed as she cried before them, sad to part with them again, yet happy for their decision. "You must never forget the friends you loved for as long as you live!"

As Sho, Wally, Milliana, and Simon wept before her, Erza raised the flag in her hand, and cried out. "Let the Fairy Tail Farewell Ceremony begin!"

"Yeah!" Natsu, Gray, Lucy, and Sora each popped out from the foliage and prepared their magic.

Natsu took a deep breath, and spat out globs of fire that shot upwards into the night sky, bursting into dazzling fireworks, captivating the hearts of Erza's friends.

"May the flowers of light blossom in your hearts!"

Gray gathered his magic in his palm, then threw it upwards, bursting in a shining display of frost and snow that glittered light the stars.

Lucy waved one of her keys above her, focusing her magic to fire upwards like Gray did, creating star patterns up in the sky that were beautiful in their own right.

Sora had a series of crystal spheres stacked atop each other, the four on the bottom being a mix of amethyst, ruby, and zircon, while the one on the top was amethyst and citrine. Throwing it upwards with a gauntlet-ed hand, it soared up like the rest, before the bottom piece blew in a burst of fire, sending the rest even further up, before the next piece blew. After 4 consecutive bursts of fire, the final piece burst apart and created a shower of light that cascaded over the water.

None of those whom the fireworks were for could utter a word, truly held speechless at the display before them, as the feelings of their old friend were echoing throughout their hearts, minds, and souls, as Erza continued the address. "I truly wish we could all stay together." Before they could change their minds, the four of them got in the boat and pushed off. "But, if that would only enfetter you… then I wish you luck on your journeys."

"It's just the opposite, Er-chan!" Milliana cried out, as they all wept for her.

"If we stay here, you'll always be reminded of painful memories…!" Wally declared, snot dripping out his nose as he cried. Simon helped Sho row the boat, both of them having difficulty looking at Erza as they left.

"I'll never forget you, wherever you are." She smiled at them, as the boat slowly pulled away from the beach. "Besides, painful memories strengthen us by acting as the seeds for tomorrow." The others kept up their magical fireworks and waving goodbye to them, as Erza and her friends said farewell to each other. "People have that power within them! Walk tall! I will continue to do so as well! As long as we remember this day, I know we'll meet again. Take care."

"You too, Nee-san!" "Bye-bye, Er-chan!" "We _will_ meet again someday! It's a promise!" "And we will never forget you, as long as we live!" Sho, Milliana, Wally, and Simon all called out their farewells, certain that that day would indeed come to be.

Erza looked out to them as tears flowed from her eyes, a truly joyous smile etched on her face as the fireworks continued. "It's a promise!"

As everyone continued their fireworks as long as they could, Erza's friends eventually faded from view, before Erza cast a look over the water in a different direction in thought. Sora noticed this and approached her. "Everything good?"

"Yes… Just a passing thought."

"You know you can tell us if something's bothering you."

Erza looked at Sora in thought for a moment, before deciding to trust him. "Earlier, when I spoke with the others, I could have sworn…" She then looked back out over the water. "That I heard Jellal's voice…"

Sora stiffened at that. "… What did he say?"

"… He told me… that I really had grown…"

Sora stared out over the water in shock, neither saying anything for several minutes. "… Hey, Erza?" She turned to look at him again, a slightly regretful look in his eyes. "There's something I've been meaning to tell you…"

* * *

After they got back to the resort, Sora told Erza how he believed Jellal saved him, leaving her shocked that he may have briefly returned to the person she once knew. Understanding why he might have been so hesitant to tell her, she accepted the apology he offered and they all went back to enjoying the vacation they were deserved, taking the time to grow even closer with everyone.

When their time ran out, they all made their way back to Magnolia to see how the guild was doing. Once they were off the train (and Natsu had recovered from the trip), they all spied an unfamiliar structure and made their way to it, five of them because it was in a spot they knew very well, and the sixth because they knew what it was from helping with the designs.

Once they were all in front of the now completed guild hall, Sora looked at it while holding his fingers like a frame, a look of pride on his face, while the rest looked at it in disbelief.

"Wow!" "This is a surprise…" "They finished it?!" "The new Fairy Tail!" Their words perfectly described their shock at how quickly they had finished the work while they were gone. It was now a three-story structure that now closely resembled a castle in design, with a large bell on the top and an elegant fence surrounding the area. Beneath the bell, a large orange banner with the symbol of the guild stood proud.

Sora smirked as he lowered his fingers, satisfied with the reactions of the others. "If you think this is impressive, just wait until you all walk inside!" He then led the way in through the main gate in the fence, taking them through the café area.

"Is this the open-air café you mentioned?" Gray asked as they looked around, seeing a lot of customers already.

"Yup. It was mostly Mira's idea, thinking that while a bar is a nice setting, she thought that a more relaxed atmosphere to chill out away from the usual brawls might be a good change of pace for some people. Also gives a means of having non-guild members come by to chat and help fund the guild itself more easily."

Natsu looked at the whole thing dumbfounded while Erza could see the logic behind it. Lucy meanwhile had her attention pulled to something that freaked her out a little. "I-Is that a gift shop?"

"Come right up! Oh, it's you guys! Welcome back!" The attendant of the shop recognized four of the ones who arrived, though he wasn't familiar to Lucy or Sora.

Happy flew over to the guy with a bowl-cut excitedly. "Wow! You're a salesclerk, Max! It's been a long time, huh?"

Max sheepishly scratched his chin as he replied. "Yeah, Master ordered me to go study about business."

"Max Alors?!" Lucy was suddenly right at the counter with stars in her eyes. "You've been in Sorcerer Weekly!"

"Ah, so that's who you were." Sora looked at him with a smile. "I know Master Makarov said he had someone in mind for the position of salesclerk, but he didn't tell me much about you."

Max flashed them both a large smile of his own. "Hello again! I've heard all about you two, Lucy, Sora!"

"I don't even want to think about what you've been told…" Lucy then turned away in worry while Sora simply looked at him curiously.

"Really? Well, I hope they're all good things."

"So far, yeah."

"Hey, what are you selling?!" Happy asked as he swiveled his head to look at everything.

Max chuckled before answering. "Well, we got some simple charms and necklaces that Sora has been kind enough to create a stock of for us. We also got T-shirts, wristbands, mugs, towels, and, our most popular item…"

"Lucy figurines!" Happy was holding one such item, shocking Lucy.

"What?! Don't make that stuff without my permission!"

"The clothes come off too, of course!" To prove Max's point, the plastic clothes split off, leaving the toy Lucy in a swimsuit, and getting Lucy to cry out in fear and embarrassment, before trudging over to and grabbing a scared and surprised Sora by the collar.

"Oi, Sora! What's the big idea?!"

"H-Hey now, I didn't approve of this either! They probably came up with it while we were gone!"

"Then convince them to stop!"

Sora looked away sheepishly. "Well, from what Max said about the sales, it might already be too late for that. Hehehe…" Lucy slumped down to the ground crestfallen at that.

After Lucy had recovered from her shock and embarrassment, they made their way inside the main hall, looking at the new dining hall with its rows of tables and stage in the back, along with an elevated floor along the walls. Several of them gawked at it as they saw it.

"So pretty!" Lucy and Happy said, loving the new design of the guild.

"Yes. Splendid indeed!" Erza said in agreement, turning to look at Sora. "How much of this was your doing?"

Sora held up his hands humbly. "Hey, all I did was figure out the layout and supplies. It was all Master and Mira that told me what they wanted."

"Nonetheless, well done." Erza praised as Sora rubbed the back of his head from embarrassment.

Gray meanwhile glanced at a grumpy looking Fire mage at his side. "What's with you, Natsu?"

"It's too different." He said dejectedly.

"Lu-chan! Welcome back!" Levy waked up and waved to the blonde, getting a smile out of the celestial mage.

"Ah, Levy-chan!"

"Amazing, isn't it?" Levy then dragged them around the guild, showing Lucy all the new features of the guild hall and everyone welcoming them back as they went from room to room, with Natsu adding grumbles of how he didn't like the changes, before Levy brought them back to the main hall. "And the biggest change is upstairs! Everyone is allowed on the second floor now!" As if to prove her point, Elfman showed up at the second floor railing and waved down to them. "Of course, you still need an S-class Wizard with you to go on an S-class quest."

Sora then placed a hand on Erza's shoulder as he smirked. "So, as long as we have the mighty Titania by our side, there won't be any problems?"

Erza smirked back at him. "So long as you behave and obey the rules perhaps." She said, reminding him that he stole a Prism recently and he swiftly took back his hand and stuffed both of them in his pockets as he whistled innocently to the side.

"Oh, you dunderheads are back!" A cheery voice drew their attention over to where Master Makarov stood, Erza greeting him, before they looked at a familiar face in unfamiliar clothes standing behind him. "This is Juvia, a new member of ours. Isn't she a cutie?"

Juvia smiled at them in a new white and blue outfit, complete with white gloves, as she curtsied to them all. "It's a pleasure to work with you all!"

Gray chuckled a little at the sight of her. "You actually joined…"

"Thank you for your help in Akane." Erza said gratefully to the water mage, Sora nodding eagerly.

"No kidding. You made things way easier for us. No telling what might have happened without you."

"This is all thanks to you!" Juvia said, a sunny smile adorning her face. "Juvia will do her very best!"

"Good to have you on board!" Lucy greeted, happy to see her again.

Juvia's personality then seemed to do a 180 as she glared at Lucy. "Romantic Rival!" As she muttered that, chills ran up Lucy's spine.

"It's not like that…!"

"And there's one other new member." Makarov said, either completely oblivious of the situation between Juvia and Lucy or disregarding it completely. "Come on. Say hello." He then directed their attention to a table that was behind them.

"There's another one?" Happy asked as they all turned around, the figure leaving them in shock of who they saw there.

"Huh?!" "Wh-Whoa! You can't be serious!"

Lucy and Gray's words were in concern to the figure with long black hair, piercings all over his face, and glaring red eyes.

"Gajeel?!" "What's _he_ doing here?!" Natsu and Gray each moved into a battle stance as Sora looked in surprise at the black mark of Fairy Tail on the shoulder of Phantom's former Iron Dragon Slayer.

"Wait!" Juvia moved between the two battle-ready mages, worry on her face. "Juvia brought him here!"

Erza glared hard at Gajeel. "Juvia aside, _he's_ the one responsible for destroying our guild hall!" Gajeel looked away from them with a huff at that.

"Now, now." Makarov said calmly. "As they say, yesterday's enemy is today's friend."

"Yeah…" Levy said quietly as she knelt down by a table, her small size being hidden easily by it as a nervous look crossed her face. "It doesn't bother me at all…" While she tried to put up a brave front, Sora could tell with a glance as she poked her head from behind the table that it was a bald-faced lie. He even spotted dark looks coming from Levy's teammates, all three of them having been used to send a message to Fairy Tail by Gajeel, who now sat in the same room.

"Screw this!" Natsu threw a hand down on the table Gajeel sat at. "I can't work with this guy!"

Gajeel then turned a taunting look at the Salamander. "Don't worry. I don't plan to be your buddy." Natsu let out a noise that easily voiced his offense to that, as Gajeel stood up. "All I want is work. It disgusts me that I ended up working at the guild I can stand the least."

"Say what?!"

In the back, Juvia was desperately trying to explain herself to Gray. "Gajeel is always alone, so Juvia couldn't turn her back on him! Oh…! I don't like him or anything, though!"

"It is the duty of the experienced to lead a stray youngster back onto the right path." Makarov said sincerely and with confidence. "He's a nice guy at heart… I'd like to believe."

Erza looked down at the Master, before looking back at Gajeel. "If that's your decision, Master, then I will comply. However, I think it would be wise to keep a close eye on him."

"Yes…" Makarov said with a sweat drop.

Natsu and Gajeel were now growling at each other from mere inches away, as Sora watched Gajeel critically. 'Master Makarov is no fool… despite his occasional behavior... If he didn't think Gajeel could be trusted, he'd never let him near the guild. Not after what he did to Levy and the others. What does he see in him…?'

Makao held a mug of beer while Happy ate a fish at his table. "They're more like dogs than dragons if you ask me…"

Happy raised his paw as he responded to that. "Aye! They're even lower than cats, right?"

Natsu had now broken away from his stare-down and walked about grumpily. "This new place just doesn't feel right to me…" All of a sudden, the lights went out, causing him to blink his eyes owlishly in surprise.

Up on the stage, a curtain parted open, and a spotlight revealed Mira sitting on a stool with a guitar in hand. When Natsu's vision recovered and he recognized her, her called out to her. "Hey, Mira! We're back!"

"Welcome back!" Mira said in response, the microphone-bird on stage letting her voice echo out across the hall. "Alright, this song is in celebration of Natsu and friends' safe return and our newly constructed building!" She then strummed the guitar once, letting the sound carry out and getting cheers from the people listening, before they quieted down for her song.

As her soft song rang out, everyone felt a sense of serenity (aside from Natsu who was STILL sulking about the guild hall). As the song played out, Makarov looked over at the group that returned from a vacation, happy they came back, and looked up at Mira, thinking of how the children of Fairy Tail… his children, were growing up, thinking it was probably close to when he should start thinking about retirement.

When the song ended, she stood and bowed while everyone cheered wildly for her. "That was great! Who's next!" Sora could just make out Macao's voice amidst the crowd, and wanted to know just as much as he did. The answer was… not what he expected.

Hence, when the lights turned off, and later back on, Sora felt perfectly justified as he spat out the drink he was sipping when he saw Gajeel sitting up on stage in shades and a white suit, guitar in hand.

The entire guild let out a sound of shock and surprise, no one imagining that Gajeel might EVER wind up on that stage. Natsu's face went pale as he stood straight up and said the words everyone was thinking. "Wh-What the…?!"

"This is a little ditty I wrote called, "Best Friend". Give it a listen." Gajeel's words didn't match anything Sora had in his head for the image of Gajeel as he stared at him in disbelief.

'Did he seriously call a song, written by him no less… "Best Friend"?'

As everyone began to tell him to get off the stage, he started singing the song. Sora, personally didn't think very much of it, finding it perfectly fine. Some people began to say that it actually sounded good and cheered him on, most of those words coming from Elfman, Juvia, Macao, Wakaba, and Max. Just about the rest of the guild however starting booing and throwing stuff. Gajeel ignored every projectile thrown his way, even as they hit him in the head, as Sora thought what was happening.

"I've never heard a song this bad in my life!" Natsu declared, holding both hands over his ears as he stood. Unfortunately, he didn't consider that it made him an easy target as a guitar came flying into his face and knocking him over!

Gajeel stood and glared at Natsu, a small bird with a harmonica for a beak having said instrument in his mouth, playing a threat to Natsu that he more than gladly reciprocated.

"You want a piece of me!"

"Shoo-bee-doo-ba!"

The two of them then collided in the air as they leapt at each other, the both of the throwing a kick that the other's caught. It quickly devolved into a slugfest in a cloud of dust as they quarreled.

Sora, quickly seeing how things would go from here, ran behind the bar and watched from there. He then noticed how Gray and Elfman accidentally triggered Erza's "rage mode", making him glad he got out of there when he could. One dragon slayer can cause a good deal of damage. Two dragon slayers and an enraged Erza? Sora wanted to keep as much distance from that as possible.

After a minute, the room had devolved into an all-out brawl, like Sora expected. Lucy and Happy had joined him behind the bar with deadpan looks on their faces. Lucy turned to look at Sora, face not changing, and with her voice matching her expression. "Hey, Sora? How sturdy is the bar?"

"Honestly? I didn't let Makarov or Mira find out that I got the sturdiest materials we could get for the bar, anticipating a possible need for a "safe area" in case of brawls." He then hiked a thumb over the counter. "Case in point."

The three of them sighed and decided to wait out the storm, barely hearing Makarov's wails of how much damage they were about to do to the place while Sora calculated in his head how much of the excess supplies he had arranged in a nearby warehouse they would need to fix things up again.

* * *

Later that day, Gajeel was standing by a large tree before the three members of team Shadow Gear, Jet and Droy looking at him angrily while Levy stayed behind them at the trunk of the tree sheepishly. "What did you call me out for?" Gajeel said, sounding like he didn't care in the least about the situation. "I was about to start work, too…"

"Work?!" Jet said angrily, Droy picking up where he left off.

"Don't be stupid! You're the one who demolished our guild!"

Gajeel placed an arm on his hip as he looked at them. "You guys are petty, all right."

Jet and Droy glowered at him while Levy tried to calm them down. "Stop this, guys… I don't think we should do this… I, I don't care at all about what happened to us anymore…"

"We have to show him…" "… who's boss!"

Jet and Droy refused to accept what Levy was saying, and instead looked harshly at Black Steel, the one in question smirking at them as he saw this.

Jet cracked his knuckles. "That's right, act tough while you still can!" He then used his magic to speed himself up until he was a blur, ramming right into Gajeel with a hit that sent him flying. Droy then threw some seeds at the ground before them, each going through the ground as a magic circle formed, before vines with fists emerged and sent a flurry of blows at Gajeel, each one hitting home. Jet then flashed in from the side and hit Gajeel with a high-speed kick that caused him to dig a trench in the ground with his feet as he was pushed back.

Levy watched the brawl nervously, not wanting to be anywhere near there, as Gajeel looked up at them, despite the wounds, but otherwise not doing anything. Jet and Droy looked at him in annoyance, thinking this was too easy. "Come on!" "What's your deal?!"

"What kind of harassment is this?" The new voice surprised all four of them turned to look at the new arrival, seeing Laxus standing just as full of himself as usual.

As Jet and Droy looked at him in surprise that he was there, Gajeel looked up at him with slight worry, knowing how strong he was supposed to be. Laxus meanwhile looked down on the Dragon Slayer. "So this is the kid who picked a fight with my guild, huh?" He then walked between the duo and marched right up to Gajeel as he remained kneeling on the ground. "I'm guessing the old geezer only let you in to keep you from wrecking the place again, right?" When he was right in front of him, his face finally shifted from one of neutrality, to fury. "That's exactly why everyone mocks us, you piece of crap!"

As Gajeel stayed still before him, and Shadow Gear unmoving behind him, Laxus continued his rant. "On my way back to this town, I heard things in pubs everywhere that pissed me off. "Fairy Tail ain't so great"?! "Those losers are done for"?!" Lightning sparked off of him, before it hit Gajeel with terrifying force! His cries of pain were clearly heard from within the surge of electricity, but Laxus wouldn't let up.

"It's because of you…!" He then hit the ground with an electrified fist, and the energy surged along the ground towards Gajeel, his eyes wide as it went after him. As it hit him, it pushed him across the park and into a tree, destroying it in the process and leaving him in a small crater.

Even Jet and Droy were beginning to feel uneasy, and the former tried to stop him. "Stop, Laxus! You're going too far!"

"I know Laxus is strong and all, but this is way too one-sided…!"

Jet then came to a realization. "D-Don't tell me Gajeel never intended to…"

Levy came to the same conclusion, and spoke as both hands covered her mouth in shock. "He wants to earn our acceptance by enduring our anger without fighting back…!" They all watched as Gajeel slowly pushed himself up, obviously pretty hurt by the attacks.

But that as when Laxus started repeatedly stomping his head into the soil with an electrified foot. "I'm gonna teach you what happens to people who defy Fairy Tail!"

"Stop it, Laxus!" Jet tried again. "That's enough!"

Laxus snapped back at the others. "Stay out of this, small fry!" He then fired off an arc of lightning that went right for them, more specifically, Levy. She could only look at the attack in shock and close her eyes, waiting for the incredible pain that would follow. She heard when the lightning hit something, but felt confused when she didn't feel a thing. Slowly, she opened her eyes… and then widened them in disbelief at what she saw.

Or rather, WHO she saw, standing in front of her as his iron arm glowed slightly from where it took the lightning attack.

"Gajeel?!"

Laxus looked at him with half-lidded eyes, while Jet and Droy looked at him in shock at both his speed and his actions despite his injuries. Gajeel then lowered his arm as it reverted to normal, not really looking at anyone in particular as he stood shakily. "Is that enough for you? I have work to do…" He the shuffled off and began to walk out of the park.

"U-Umm…!" Levy tried to call out to him, but he quickly shut her down.

"Just leave me be already…" As he walked out of the park, a dejected Shadow Gear watched him go as Laxus went the other way, seething at all of them.

As Gajeel walked down the street, his injuries caused him to trip and stumble to a knee. As he gathered himself, someone grabbed him by the upper arm and pulled him up. Looking in surprise, he saw Sora still holding him by the arm. "We need to talk."

Gajeel just blinked, then scowled. "You too, huh? Can we hurry this up? I have work to do."

"As hard as it may be for you to do so, you can trust I don't plan on beating the crap out of you like those other three did." When Gajeel narrowed his eyes in suspicion at that, Sora continued. "I saw the whole thing, start to finish. Wanted to know what kind of person I was dealing with. Now, I think I do."

He scoffed at that. "Oh, really? Go ahead then. Tell me what kind of scum you think I am."

"The loyal kind." Gajeel's eyes widened in surprise, not expecting those to be the words he heard, before Sora led him over to a bench.

They sat in silence for a few minutes, Gajeel scowling and sending a glance over at Sora every now and then, who was not even looking at him, just the sky with his arms crossed. After a couple minutes of this, Gajeel caved with a shout. "Alright then, out with it! What the hell do you want to say?!"

Sora merely blinked at the sky, and stayed quiet a little longer, before looking Gajeel right in the eye. "Why did you attack the guild before?"

Gajeel blinked, then turned his head with a scoff. "That's what you want to know? I did it because they're Fairy Scum."

"Look at me."

"Huh?" Gajeel looked back at him, only to sweat a little when he saw a face that promised bad things if one didn't listen. And honestly? Gajeel… was a little disturbed by it.

"Look me in the eye, and tell me why you demolished the guild. Tell me why you did such a thing to Levy and her friends. Tell me why you were so adamant about making Fairy Tail your enemy." As Sora said all this, he had let the illusion around his artificial eye drop as it shimmered.

Gajeel tried to avert his gaze, but found he couldn't. Sora didn't raise his voice once as he spoke, but his face, tone, and even his body language had Gajeel gulping nervously, every instinct in his being telling him to be completely honest with the guy… or be prepared for true suffering.

After what felt like an hour to the dragon slayer, but was really only about 10 seconds, he finally complied. "… I was told to…"

Sora relaxed his being at that, his eye being hidden away once more as Gajeel finally looked away, only to stare dejectedly at the ground. When Sora didn't say anything immediately, Gajeel continued. "Honestly, I didn't really care one way or another about Fairy Tail. I just knew that if they were Jose's enemies, then that made them my enemies. It wouldn't have made a difference one way or another which guild it was. Whoever Jose, the leader of Phantom Lord, the guild I was a part of said was an enemy, was someone I had no tolerance for."

"… As I thought…" Gajeel's face turned to him so fast, one might of thought he got whiplash, but Sora was once again looking at the sky. "If Makarov truly thought of you as a threat to the guild and beyond redemption, he never would have let you anywhere within a mile of the guild itself, or any of its members. If you truly hated the guild, you wouldn't have gone up on that stage and performed in front of us. You would have found some other place that was doing a "music night" or something. As for the part where you were getting a beating…"

"How did you see that?" Gajeel interrupted. "I didn't sense you once, but you claim to have seen the whole thing."

"I stayed downwind of you. You aren't the only dragon slayer I know, so I figured the nose was universal." Gajeel clicked his tongue at being compared to the Salamander. "After that I just needed to stay out of sight, and I happen to have years of practice at that. Anyway, I stayed out of it because I wanted to see how you'd react. The way you took each and every attack, despite obviously holding yourself back, told me not only were you regretful of your past actions, but that you were willing to do whatever it took to gain the guild's acceptance. I'll also admit that I was just about to stop Laxus's attack myself had you not suddenly shot yourself in between the two of them." Sora then looked back at a dumbstruck Gajeel. "How am I doing so far?"

Gajeel could only stare at him for several moments, before he turned his gaze away and crossed his arms, not saying a word.

"So, how'd you wind up joining Fairy Tail?"

"… Apparently, Juvia asked the Master to invite me to the guild. He tracked me down to where I was wallowing in solitude, and called me on the same bullshit you are now. He even told me that he would never forgive what I did to those three… but he wouldn't ignore someone trying to hide in the darkness like I was trying to do to myself…" He then looked up at the sky, watching the clouds move about. "He said he would give me a choice; stay put, and suffer in solitude… or move forward, and take back who I am. He didn't want to save me. He wanted to give me a chance to save myself."

Sora leaned back and looked back up at the sky at that. "Gotta say, you aren't exactly the type of person I thought you were. You actually seem to have some redeeming qualities."

"Shut up, you damn Crystal Ball."

Sora actually quirked an eyebrow at that, glancing at Gajeel. "Crystal ball?"

"Reading into me as if you were looking into a crystal ball you made yourself, seeing into my head like that? Seems to fit!"

Sora blinked at that, and actually chuckled at the nickname. "Haha, I do hope you come up with something more interesting than "Crystal Ball" in the future, but fair enough. Anyway, I wanted to be certain of the type of person I thought you were, before I decided what to do from here."

"If you expect me to go around apologizing to people, you can forget it."

"Never even entertained the idea." Sora said honestly, Gajeel taking another glance at him at that. "Not only do you seem to have too much pride to apologize, but the people of the guild only know Gajeel the monster, who destroyed their home and brutalized their family. They wouldn't accept an apology from you the way things are now, even if you begged. Which again, you got too much pride for that."

Gajeel was quiet for a few moments after that, before he spoke up again. "Let's say for a moment, that you are right about all this. That everything I said was actually the truth… Then what exactly do you have in mind?"

"Just be yourself."

"Huh?!" Gajeel was now staring at him in disbelief at the normal sounding words, not believing for a moment he was being serious.

But then he saw the look on Sora's face, completely serious, and he found himself paying careful attention. "You, as you truly are, whether or not you realize it yourself, is someone who is loyal to the people he stands beside, possessing a sense of duty and honor that drives you to acknowledge your actions and work to make amends for them. The true personality you hold, hidden behind the monster you actually pretend to be, is the type of person that thrives in a guild like Fairy Tail. So show them the man that lies behind the monster they know, the one that commands it to tear apart those who you perceive as a threat to you and your allies. Give them a reason to trust you, no matter how long it takes…" He relaxed himself again as he got to the end of what he wanted to say. "… and before you know it, this guild will truly welcome you as one of their own."

Gajeel looked at him with wide eyes, before looking down with a glare. "Tch, I didn't come to make friends!"

"Hah! If you think you can avoid making friends after joining Fairy Tail, then you've got another thing coming." Sora then stood up and turned to him. "After all, this guild has a habit of forming connections to people at strange times. Heck, my first encounter with Fairy Tail included trying to escape from them after I stole something they were guarding. Now look at me. Oh, and before I forget, I won't mention this little exchange to others unless you say I can. Now then, I got work to do, and clients to get off my back. You'd think they would go elsewhere for their shiny trinkets and such when one doesn't get their things as soon as they want." He then turned around and walked away from Gajeel, leaving him to his thoughts.

"… Rich Boy!"

Sora stopped at Gajeel's voice and turned to him, the Dragon Slayer now standing and facing him. "Huh?"

"… Crystal Ball doesn't quite roll of the tongue very well. Considering you apparently work with crystals 24/7, "Rich Boy" seems to fit just as well."

Sora blinked at him twice, before he threw his head back in laughter, Gajeel smirking as he chuckled in his strange laugh. Once they had calmed down, Sora smirked back at Gajeel. "So, now I'm "Rich Boy", huh? I guess I can live with that one." He then pulled out a citrine sphere the size of a baseball in his hand, tossing it to Gajeel. "Catch."

As soon as he caught it, the crystal glowed, surprising Gajeel as the light traveled across his form. As his wounds from earlier began to slowly heal and the pain began to dull, he looked up in surprise at Sora, whom was grinning at him. "Consider it a gift, from your first friend from Fairy Tail." He then turned around and waved a hand back at Gajeel. "See you around, Metalhead! And welcome to Fairy Tail!"

Gajeel blinked at him as Sora walked down the street and around a corner, before he looked down at the sphere that was healing him, and what it meant. After a few minutes of him staring at it in disbelief of what just happened, he let out a small, but genuine smile. "Gihihi!"

* * *

A/N: And so the arc officially ends, with the next one doing something a little different. Hopefully I won't take 4 months to post it, might even manage to get it out around Christmas or New Years. As for the bit with Gajeel, he's honestly one of my favorite characters and instantly gaining my favor once he protected the very ones he tortured. As such, looking forward to including him in this story when I can. In any case, I suppose the next chapter will be either a new year's or holiday present, so will work on getting it ready. Hope to see you guys there when I manage to get it out! Later.


	14. Side Work

A/N: Happy New Years! Glad to have had the response I got for the last chapter so her comes another one. I will admit, this is an OC chapter approaching the Battle of Fairy Tail in a different manner than most people seem to do, partially because I had trouble picturing how to have Sora participate in it. In any case, I hope what happens in this chapter is at least interesting and keeps you guys coming back for more. Now then, on to the reviews before we start.

 **Zoofan** : Haha, glad you enjoyed it. Took some time and a lot of re-watching the episode and chapter it came from to properly word everything so I'm glad the effort paid off.

 **Piemaster981** : Glad to both surprise and impress you. When I got to the part of the series where Gajeel defended Levy for the first time I have to admit that was the moment Gajeel became one of my favorite characters and I just had to reflect that in my story. Hope you enjoy what I came up with here.

 **pokeheroaadyn** : Good to know the chapter was well received! Let me know how this one fairs too please.

* * *

After returning to the guild and seeing Juvia and Gajeel as new members of Fairy Tail, time passed normally for the usually energetic guild. Natsu still had some side effects from eating the Etherion for a while, but eventually got over most if it since Sora had filtered most of it before he consumed it, so he was now looking forward to eating all that he could when the festival rolled around. Meanwhile, all of Magnolia began to prepare for the annual festival to begin. Fairy Tail was even holding a Miss Fairy Tail contest to get everyone in the festive spirit, something Lucy really wanted to win for the prize so she could be safe from rent for half the year. And while everyone was busy having fun with the preparations for the festival… Sora was stuck slaving away in his basement.

"… Urgh, that's another one." He picked up the latest piece of jewelry from the table and moved to a small pile of wooden boxes. Inside had a good amount of cushioning, that he carefully placed the pendant in, before closing it. He then carried the box over to a table by the stairs up, upon which lay a series of other boxes of similar size, and some of the size to hold earrings, rings, and occasionally cuff-links. He then grabbed a clipboard that was hanging on the wall next to it and went down the list. "Okay, that takes care of the Special order for Ms Kariso the trader, wanting a good luck charm with a bird theme. Now today I have so far completed… 13 out of 21 orders…" Putting the clipboard back, he rubbed his face. "Man, so close to being done…"

Taking a break, Sora tiredly walked up the stairs of his new home in Magnolia. A good 30-minute walk away from the guild, or 5 minutes by water board, and the house itself was pretty standard to how the rest of the town looked. The living room had a couch and coffee table in front of a fireplace with a few chairs here and there on the carpeted floor. Connected to it, the kitchen had a clear view of it as the open doorway and a section of the wall gave access to it. The kitchen was setup similarly to his old hideout, but better appliances. There was even a kitchen island in the middle of it for preparing food, and a space for a dining table to comfortably eat meals.

The front door was next to the living room, so anyone who entered was right in sight of it, and the back door was connected to the kitchen. Down the hall from the door, several doors led to a closet, a bathroom, and a couple of spare rooms he didn't know what to do with yet, so he settled for using them for storage until he had a better idea. There was also the door that led to the basement, which he had turned into his own workshop complete with everything a jeweler and sculptor would need. To the side of the front door opposite of the living room and just above the basement stairs, a set of stairs led up to the second floor, where the master bedroom and a couple guest rooms were, as well as another bathroom.

Opening the door to the basement, Sora walked into the hall and yawned, five of the boxes from downstairs under his arm that he brought into the storage room next door and arranged them for easy organization, checking the labels he put on each box. He then looked at the stacks of boxes in this room, his efforts from the last 3 days of catching up with what piled up over his small vacation. "Man, give me a break people. I wasn't even gone that long!" A flashing light near the side of the door into the room caught his attention, and he placed his finger on the security lacrima that was there.

He used ones similar to this back at his old place, another kind of lacrima he created himself. A series of lacrima around his house would scan the area constantly, each having a subtle, yet long-lived amounts of magic in them to keep them active and unnoticeable. They record the approach of any lifeforms or magic that get close, and send the information to the ones he placed near the doors of each room. When he was home and someone or something they didn't recognize approached the area, they would flash white for anything normal and red for a potential threat, and he can read those recordings by using his magic to interact with them. Raising an eyebrow in curiosity as to who they said was there, he walked out of the storage room and walked towards the front door.

But stopping once he saw something annoying.

* * *

[1 minute earlier…]

"So this is Sora's new place…" Lucy looked up at the two story house in question as the rest of the team was with her. "It looks nice!" The building not only had a nice exterior and lawn with a pair of Sakura trees, but it also faced the canal along with a few others that provided a splendid view. Lucy was honestly amazed that Sora was able to get his hands on such an incredible piece of property.

"Indeed." Erza appraised the place with a hand on her chin. Since the recent events at the tower, Erza finally felt comfortable enough to walk around without her armor on at all times, hence why she was now in her casual clothes. "It almost makes me want to acquire a place of my own and move out of Fairy Hills…"

"Maybe." Gray said, neutral about the whole thing. "That said, we're here to figure out what's keeping him, so we going or not?" That was the reason they showed up today. They haven't seen or really heard from Sora in the last few days, so they convinced Mira and Makarov to let them know where his new place was so they could check on him.

"Right, so what are you guys waiting for?!" Natsu said with a smile, already halfway through the living room window he had opened, Happy floating on the other side with a salute.

"Aye!"

"NATSU, HAPPY, USE THE DOOR!" Lucy was already sick of him breaking into her apartment, but did he really have to do that at other people's places too?!

"Ah, it's no big deal. We're friends!" Natsu's charismatic grin was turned fully to her.

So that made the impact to the back of his skull that much more painful and surprising as it had him falling out onto the lawn, as another impact rocked into Happy's back and shot him spinning out the window and into the trunk of one of the trees.

As Natsu cradled his head as he lay on the ground and Happy tried to regain his senses, the others looked about nervously as Sora leaned the upper part of his body out the window to glare at the two. "And it's BECAUSE we're friends, that I recommend you use the door LIKE A NORMAL PERSON! Or so help me Natsu the next time you do this, I'm strapping you to my board and we'll be doing laps around town for an entire day. And we won't even stop for food, I'll bring some with me. As for Happy, I'll just find the most delicious fish I can find and eat it in front of you, not letting you have a single piece as I savor it."

"Sora, you're evil…" Happy said in a daze from where he was stuck in the trunk, Lucy looking for a way to gingerly get him out of there.

As Gray tended to Natsu with ice to his head, Erza looked at Sora cautiously. "Was the force really necessary?"

Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, Sora rubbed his head. "Probably not. Sorry guys, just been a bit tired." Looking again, he saw Lucy now had a lucid Happy in her arms and Gray was helping Natsu stand. "Come on in. Through the door, please."

Closing the window, he went to the door and let them in, guiding them to the couch and chairs before heading into the kitchen. A minute later, he walked out with a plate of fish and a bowl of ruby flames, giving them to the wounded pair which gratefully accepted. "This is for maybe doing too much damage in irritation. Seriously though, just use the door next time?"

Natsu, having recovered more thanks to the flames, nodded in affirmation as he slurped it up, while the fish had knocked Happy out of his daze and he raised his paw in a salute. "Aye sir!"

Sora let out a small smile, before taking a sigh as he let out a sigh. "Alright then, this visit was a bit unexpected. What brings you guys here?"

"You haven't been to the guild in a while. We felt like something was wrong, so we came by to check on you." Erza said from the seat next to him, before taking a look at the interior with the others. "I must say, you really have found a nice place here."

"Thanks. Loke helped me find it back when I first got into town, the night before the war with Phantom happened. Has room for everything I might need."

"True. This is pretty spacious." Gray laid back in his chair, as everyone turned back to Sora. "Still, where have you been man? Even if most people don't take requests every time they come in, they don't usually hole themselves away like this."

Sora leaned back in the chair, letting out a deep sigh. "Been trying to catch up on commissions. That break we took, interrupted as it was, led to quite a few people sending requests while I was gone. I'm working to be done with the rest today, then ship everything out tomorrow."

"How many are there?" Lucy had an apprehensive look on her face while Sora looked up in thought.

"Hmmm. I did 27 orders yesterday and 25 the day before so… 73 in total with 8 to go?" Jaws dropped at that, Natsu's bowl falling onto the ground with the top falling out and falling to its side as the flames sputtered out, which Sora idly noted as something he was grateful for as he didn't want to change the carpeting just yet.

"… No offense, Sora…" Lucy managed to get out. "But how the hell are you making that many in only a few days?!"

He shrugged at her question. "Just that good. Efficiency and quality are things I take pride in. It's no different than putting together a puzzle with my supply stockpile, even if sometimes I need something specific made. Still, it's tiring me the hell out. If so many of these weren't express delivery requests, I would have paced myself some more. But apparently everyone wanted things such as necklaces, rings, earrings, etc., as soon as possible across the country." He moved a hand through his hair then. "Still, this is a bit much for 1 man to handle. May need to rethink my advertisement in the paper."

"Want some help?"

Sora quirked an eyebrow at Natsu's question. "No offense man, but you don't exactly strike me as the type of guy who would be good at this. Burning stuff to ashes is different from creating a piece of art like the stuff I've been making. Maybe you guys could hand me stuff while I worked at the desk so I'm not walking all over the place, but I don't know how much you could help actually making stuff."

Erza looked at him thoughtfully. "You said something about an ad?"

"Yeah, was using that to make sure my info was out there for whatever services people wanted from me. Even made sure a copy of it went out to some of my past clients to let them know the circumstances. Though that may have worked against me since they seem to have informed some of their friends and colleagues about me and my work. I'm going to need to change the info if I want to be comfortable enough to go on jobs more often."

"Why not just quit? You've already proved you're well enough off that you don't need the money." Gray was still shocked at how much Sora had funded the rebuilding of the guild hall, especially since Sora had said that it wouldn't be a large bit of his resources. Knowing that, he could easily say that Sora had no more need to acquire more money.

But that wasn't what Sora was thinking about. "It isn't about the money. Sure it's nice to be rewarded for my work, but it's somewhat become my hobby, as well as a way of training myself."

"What are you talking about?"

"Well, you told me before that when you were being trained in using Ice magic, you were made to strip to your underwear in the cold to get a feel for it, right? It gave you an understanding of how the ice looked and felt. The same applies to me." Sora raised a palm and created a sphere of crystal in his palm. "The more I work with crystals, the deeper my understanding of them goes. How they feel, how they look, how durable they are, how the light reflects off of them. All of this and more helps me to gain a better grasp on how my magic can grow and improve. After all, the essence of Maker Magic…" He then shared a grin of understanding with the ice mage as Gray finished the sentence.

"Is limited only by our imagination."

"Exactly. Besides, I never had a teacher like you to show me the ropes. This is one of the best ways for me to get better at using my magic."

"How is that going by the way?" Sora looked at Lucy for clarification, and she responded hesitantly. "I-I mean you're doing all this so you can…"

Understanding what she was getting at, he looked over to a small box in the corner of the room. Getting up, he walked over to and opened it, pulling out a small piece of crystal of similar color to the prisons that hold his family. Making sure the others could see it, he explained. "I was able to recreate a small piece of their prisons. While I'm away, I'll be using this to test what level of control I have, and whether or not it would be enough to release them. So far, even with 5 gem-types, I'm not strong enough to free them. But I won't let that stop me. I WILL get them out. Even if it takes me another ten years to do so." He then smiled softly. "But I don't think it'll take that long. Since meeting you guys I got 2 of those types almost too easily, even if the last one screwed up my control over all of them. It should only be a matter of time before I complete whatever requirements I need, and I am willing to wait as long as it takes."

Feeling a hand on his shoulder, he turned in surprise, not having heard Erza get up and stand beside him, a firm and confident smile on her face. "And we will wait beside you, giving you whatever support we can for as long as you'll have it."

Staring at her for several moments, then looking back at the similar looks the others were giving. He then looked back at the crystal in his hand with a small smile on his face. "Thanks." He then returned the piece to the box and stretched his arms. "Alright, it should only take me a few more hours to finish the rest, so I should get back to work." Sending them a smile, he continued. "So, who wants to come down and chat while I work my magic?"

A little later, as Sora was looking at the next item on the list, the others were looking around the basement in awe. "SO MUCH STUFF!" Natsu couldn't believe all the tools and boxes that had been put in the room. Despite the number of items that were gathered among the basement's tables, shelves, and floor, the place was still organized enough to accommodate the entire group as they looked about the place.

Sora meanwhile went to a clipboard hanging from a wall and inspected it. "Let's see, a sapphire necklace eh? Least this one looks simple and doesn't have any requested enchantments." Casting a glance around the room, he spotted what he was looking for. "Lucy, the shelf on your right in the middle. Bring the box over here. Gray, inside the box on the ground near your feet, second from the right of the group. Grab one from the middle." As he said this, he walked to a desk in the back and began to set things up.

Curious, Lucy and Gray checked the boxes mentioned, and each was surprised when Lucy looked in the small box to see a small pile of sapphires, and Gray found a series of silver chains set into different categories, as well as some ornaments with empty sockets. Lucy however was more so as she didn't know how to explain the sapphires. Bringing it over to Sora, she asked about it. "Oi, Sora! How do you have this many sapphires?!"

When Gray brought the designated chain over, he saw the number of sapphires as well and mirrored her surprise, the others doing the same when they came over to see. Sora just calmly placed the chain in the center of the table and spread it out, making sure it was indeed the one he wanted and that there were no problems with it. Satisfied, he grabbed one of the sapphires from the box and placed it near the largest socket in the necklace he was making, dropping the illusion on his eye as he examined it. "Yes, normally this many would be hard to come by. And while I might manage to pull it off with my funds, I wanted a more reliable means of getting a hold of crystals in case of shortages. So, I'm just using my own."

"HUH?! You're what?!"

"I'm making them myself from my magic." Sora said, as he took a hold of the sapphire and right before their eyes… molded it like clay. They watched transfixed as the clear piece of rock was being manipulated like a piece of putty. He made the once spherical crystal appear to look more flat and began to take a teardrop shape. "I make them myself, then use the ones I create as the materials. I can then use my magic to control the size, luster, and overall quality more easily than doing so with a natural one."

Gray looked over at the boxes that likely had more crystals. "But wouldn't they fade away over time? Without enough magic to sustain them, they ought to fade away as time passes."

"Normally, yes. But after setting them into the sockets I begin to remove the magic within them. If I do it right they become ordinary crystals, the process similar to removing water from something to preserve it. They become so natural looking that you could only tell by knowing what to look for. It's actually pretty similar to creating a Star Prism, and those things can last for centuries."

"Man, your magic is pretty awesome."

"Don't sell yourself short, man. I still can't do anything too complex without tiring myself out too much. You however can easily create whatever comes to mind with ease."

"Yeah, but my ice can't create light, fire, or wind like your crystals can."

"And right now my control over those abilities is damaged because I messed up somewhere trying to pick up that last one. Still have no idea if the issue was as simple as too many too fast, or just because of the nature of the element." Sora smirked at him. "So how about we say each of us has our perks and leave it at that?"

"Sounds good to me." Gray returned with his own smirk.

Sora nodded, before looking back to and inspecting the sapphire he was working with. Satisfied, he began to set the gem into the socket in the middle. "So, anything interesting going on recently?"

"Mostly just the preparations for the festival." Erza commented as everyone began to idly look through Sora's supplies, curious as to what else he was working with.

"Right, that. If I recall, the festival is hosted by the guild and one of the main events is the Fantasia Parade, right? You guys board floats and use your magic to entertain everyone."

"That sounds about right."

"There's also a beauty contest within the guild itself!" Lucy said in suppressed excitement. "The winner of the contest gets named Miss Fairy Tail and gets a big cash reward!"

Sora finished setting the gem and reached for another sapphire to put in one of the remaining two sockets. "Really? Huh. Are all the girls taking part?"

"Yeah! I really want to win it myself. I think I got a chance of beating Mira, though it will be tough."

"Hmm, she is rather beautiful… If just beauty was enough, she might win it hands down. Though contests like that are also about popularity, so Erza might be able to win it too."

Erza looked at him curiously from where she was inspecting his ruby stash. "You really think so?"

"You are the Titania, Queen of the Fairies, aren't you? And Mira already told me how the both of you used to be rivals." He then looked up and smirked at her. "Which I STILL can't believe with how I only know the current version of Mira. So this could even be a way to rehash any old grudges you to might have against each other, or even just a bit of fun."

Erza smirked from amusement at the thought, slightly missing the days of having a rival like Mira was. "Perhaps that would be fun."

"Ah, Sora! You got Emeralds too!" Happy was up on the shelf the sapphires had come from, going through another box and pulling out an emerald.

"Yup. Got other types as well. Can't use them in my magic, but I was able to get a few real emeralds to look at, before recreating my own emeralds. Did the same with other types of gems, so I can do just about any kind of crystal as needed."

"Wow. Your magic really does have it made." Natsu commented as he was rifling through a box of accessories without jewels.

"Perhaps, but I'd rather figure out what the other types can do as soon as I can. Emerald really has me curious since I thought that one would be wind, so I was really surprised when I got that with Zircon instead."

Erza then cast a gaze back up the stairs. "Hm, it occurs to me that we never threw you a housewarming party, now that you've officially moved in."

"Good thing too, seeing as I still haven't finished personalizing the place. Maybe we can set something up after the festival. Until then, I'll focus on what I can do at the moment." As he began to set a third piece, they all continued to chat idly. After he finished a piece, he would ask the others to grab what he needed, and they wound up speeding up the process. As they reached the last item on the list, Sora looked at it in slight surprise. "Hm? This is…"

* * *

"What do you mean you're going out of town?!" Sora grinned sheepishly with a small box under his arm at the looks being sent his way by the entirety of Team Natsu, surprised that he was leaving so close to the festival. They were at the train station, having helped him send out the completed items to where they were intended. When he said they were done, despite him having one more item in hand, they had asked about it and got the response he gave them.

"Well, the request itself was apparently time-sensitive, and there are only a few days left to deal with it. While a little strange that they wanted me to deliver it myself, I'll just deal with it really quick before the festival starts. I should still be back in time to see Fairy Tail's parade at the latest, and this gives me a good chance to get some solo experience doing a job."

"I still think you should take someone with you." Erza said with a frown as she crossed her arms.

"If I did, it would be one of you guys. As for why I won't," He pointed at the two girls. "both of you are participants in the beauty contest, and are liable to miss it if you come along," He pointed at Gray. "you will probably wind up bringing someone along unintentionally that could make things difficult," Not responding to the confused look on the ice mage's face, he then pointed at Natsu. "and you're likely to make something burn or break with your track record."

Sora then brought his arm to his side as the other one kept a safe hold on the box. "Guys, relax. It's a simple job delivering a piece of my work. I can handle something like this easily and quickly if I go on my own."

"Are you sure you want to leave so close to the festival?" Lucy asked, looks of uncertainty on her and the others' faces.

But Sora just smiled at them. "I'm sure. This will be done before you guys know it! The town of Amarylis isn't too far away, so I still have plenty of time to get back before the festival. Be sure to prepare a picture for whoever wins the contest if I don't make it back before then."

After spending a bit more time convincing the others and telling them they'd see him soon, Sora was on the train heading to Amarylis, where the commission had come from. It was close to noon when he arrived, and he went straight to find the address he was given.

The town gave off a somewhat nostalgic feeling, each building looking old yet well taken care of, showing that the town has definitely been around a while. The old-fashioned style of the buildings had Sora smiling from the aesthetic feeling they gave off, but was distracted from it by the looks of the people. Everyone seemed to go about their day as normally as they could, but an underlying sense of unease and fear seemed to permeate throughout the people. Frowning in worry, Sora walked cautiously around as he tried to discern what was going on.

He then heard the sounds of things breaking. Following it to its source, he saw a group of people wearing cloaks tossing over some food stalls, all but one of them covering their heads with a cloak. The one who's face he could see was a woman with a malicious look on her face, one side of her face bald and the other having long, dark pink hair. She stood back as her friends tossed over some street stalls as some of her people took food, money, and trinkets, a few others standing by her side.

Sora saw as someone tried to protect their things, only for the woman to smirk as she pointed at him, and the man went rigid as his arms were brought to his sides. As she moved her hand, the man was lifted and slammed into a wall, Sora surprised as he didn't feel any magic being activated.

"That's what you get for going against me!" The woman boasted arrogantly, not giving the man a second glance as other civilians helped him up. "I have more power in my finger than any of you can fathom! None of you can stand a chance against my authority!"

"That so?" She turned her head towards the new voice, seeing Sora as he walked up to them calmly. "Gotta say, telekinesis is pretty interesting. Don't see a lot of magic that can do that very often."

Her cronies quit looting to look at the newcomer, the woman looking at him with a raised brow and a confident smile. "Thanks for the compliment. I take great pride in my power." One of the cloaked individuals turned their head towards her at that, but quickly turned it back.

"Who said it was a compliment?" Her smirk dropped at that, as Sora smirked at her. "I only compliment people if I think they deserve it. So far, I see no reason to commend you on anything, other than being a right bitch."

She downright glared with a snarl at that. "You dare?!" She then raised her hand and created a magic circle, making purple chains erupt from the ground under Sora's feet, binding him and making him struggle. "No one, and I mean NO ONE, defies me, Jagora!"

Sora looked at her with a strained smile. "Jagora, huh? Gotta say, that name of yours isn't very terrifying. Sounds like something a child would name a pet!"

She seethed at this, before pointing at him, and an invisible force wrapped around him before he was lifted in the air. As she flailed her arm about, he was thrown into walls, slammed against the buildings, and otherwise treated like a rag-doll. Soon, he was lifted high up, and she threw her hand downwards, Sora slamming into the ground with incredible force that threw up a dust cloud.

Jagora looked at the dust with satisfaction. "Hehehe, that'll teach you what happens when you mess with me!" But her eyes changed to surprise with the rest of her group as the cloud cleared, and instead of a bruised and battered Sora, they saw a few hunks of crystal with her binding chains around them as they slowly dissipated. "Huh?"

"You're right, that did teach me a few things." She then rounded towards an alleyway in the direction he had come from, and Sora stepped out from the shadows, not a scratch on him. "Like how easily taunted you are."

Jagora stared him down with a glare. "So… You must be a mage."

"And you are a crazy gang leader who happened to cross my path. So, will this be going the easy way…" Crystal gauntlets and greaves then formed on him as he took a battle stance, having hidden the piece he was bringing in the alley. "Or the hard way?"

"… Finally…" With a malicious smile, she flung both her arms out, and several items on the street lifted up into the air. "Finally, someone I can REALLY test myself with!" Moving her arms forward, the objects flung towards Sora, with more picking up and following them as Sora bashed and kicked them away. When she thought he was properly distracted, she aimed a palm to the ground, a chain shooting up and wrapping around her upper arm. She then pulled the rest of the apparently 20-foot-long chain and whipped it at Sora, who just noticed in time to create a wall of crystal to block its path.

It bought him enough time to be shocked as it shattered his construct with ease and be able to get out of the way as its momentum was reduced.

As the flurry of objects halted, Jagora looked at Sora like a predator. "Do keep this interesting, will you? My magic breaking chain hasn't had many opportunities to be used effectively."

"So that's what it was…" Sora wasn't sure how else she'd be able to shatter his crystals so easily. Looking around, he noticed that enough people had cleared for him to be willing to turn things up a notch, and switched his gauntlets to being one of ruby, and the other of zircon. Holding the palms out to her and her cronies, he unleashed a swirling vortex of fire and wind at them all, catching her off guard as the flames hid them from sight. Sora kept it up for a few more seconds before letting it stop, preparing himself for whatever was left once the flames died down and hoping he hadn't done Natsu-level destruction.

When the smoke died down, he saw that four of her ten cronies had stepped in front of her, each holding a rod that projected a magic circle to act as a barrier, the rest hanging behind them with a smug Jagora. Seeing this, Sora grit his teeth. "You're not just a petty gang, are you?"

"Allow me to formally introduce myself." Jagora mocked bowed to him as she spoke smugly. "I am Jagora, of the Dark Guild Laughing Coffin. And this town," She then looked at him with the face of someone who knew they were at the top. "belongs to me!"

"Dark Guild, huh?" Sora was now feeling a bit nervous. He came simply to deliver a piece of his work to someone who asked for it. Now he's staring at a group of people from a Dark Guild?! He then took a few moments to carefully look at each member, seeing most of them holding a device of some sort. 'Hm, looks like they mostly rely on their tools, so that makes them small fry. Should be simple if I actually try. The problem will be the rest.' He turned his gaze to the three beside Jagora, each without an item. Two of them had grins on their faces similar to Jagora's, while the third stayed behind her as their hood obscured most of their face, seeing only the mouth as it was set into a neutral line, neither a frown or a smile. 'They likely have their own magic, just a matter of finding out what it is and how I can counter it. I'll need to be cautious…'

"Alright boys! Take him down!" The seven with devices then began to take shots at Sora, firing magic bullets out of the rods as he formed a shield on his arm and ran to dodge them, blocking what he could. At one point he jumped and set his hand as if he were about to finger flick them, a small purple pellet forming between the thumb and finger he was flicking with. He then fired the pellet at one of the goons, hitting the device they were holding and destroying it, making the grunt cry out in shock as he pulled his hands away. He kept this up a little longer and managed to destroy two more devices, before Jagora got impatient. She made a gesture and the two grinning cronies began to get involved, the third one staying behind her and maintaining a neutral stance.

Standing behind the device users, one of them clasped his hands together, before placing both of them on the ground, their magic causing the very earth to shift. Next thing Sora knew, an earthen fist was rising up from the ground that he barely guarded against, sending him straight into the air. The second one then created a lance of fire and hurled it at Sora, who let it hit while he channeled Ruby through his heart. As he fell smoking from the attack, the gang had a small cheer at their apparent success.

Sora however, as he lay there, started to gather his magic, knowing just how much he'd need for this next spell. As one came by to see what he had on him, he swiftly struck them in the gut, before standing up and kicking them back into the others, sending three to the ground with him, before unleashing the spell he had in mind.

"Crystal Make, Diamond Storm!" Since first creating the technique, he was able to determine how to mold the magic to do exactly the amount of damage he wanted. And since this spell was not element dependent, he hadn't lost the ability to control it when he gained Zircon. Now, it was like a harsh hailstorm of small crystals that rained down on all nine of the previously confident troublemakers, and making them run for cover as the hits already began to leave sizeable bruises.

Jagora grunted, before tapping her foot a few times, catching the attention of the grunt behind her, before raised her palm out in front of her. A few seconds later, the crystals Sora was releasing were impacting against an invisible barrier. Narrowing his eyes at what he saw, he ended the spell and looked over at Jagora. "Looks like if you want something done right, you have to do it yourself!"

Raising a brow, he watched as the others parted way and she once again prepared her chain-whip. Responding, Sora created a sword, making both the sword and the shield as densely paced as he could, hoping that the extra mass would make it that much harder for Jagora to break them with her chains. Preparing his eye, he reengaged with Jagora, the extra amount of crystals helping like he thought it would as the shield would resist the chain far better than his earlier wall had, and used it to bash her chain away to throw her off balance so he can launch a real attack at her on occasion. After dodging another swipe, he felt something on his leg and became unable to move from that spot. When he returned his attention to Jagora, the chain was already bearing down on him, and bringing up his shield and sword as all he had time for, the chain destroying both and the gauntlets on his arms as the sensation went away and he was thrown back into a wall.

As he recovered and recreated his gauntlets, he grinned at them all. "So THAT'S what's going on."

Jagora furrowed her eyes at that. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"Your magic. I knew something was off about it." Sora stood up tall as he looked at her. "Chains are one thing, but telekinesis has nothing to do with them, no matter how you think of it. Especially since I couldn't feel any magic activating. But if it was already active, then no wonder I'd never notice it. And unfortunately for you…" He then looked right at the individual in the back, whose mouth opened slightly in surprise. "I can 'see' the magic you're using if I try, instead of Jagora taking credit for it herself. She's just telling you what to do and ordering to keep it subtle so she wouldn't get caught, making her seem more powerful than she actually is. Am I right?"

Jagora turned to the person in anger, but they disregarded the fury aimed at them to smirk at Sora under the hood, and a man's voice responded. "Very impressive. Few can see them when I don't want them to be seen." He then started taking a few steps forward, addressing Jagora and the others. "Hey. It may not be my place to say so, but it would probably be best if you went back to the hideout. This guy is no joke of a mage like some of you. I reckon he's even part of a guild."

Jagora glared at the both of them as the rest of her goons formed around her. "And you?"

"You know me. We have an arrangement, and someone needs to hold him back while you get out of here. Besides…" Tossing off the cloak, Sora was met by a svelte man who wore black leather armor, with teeth that were slightly pointed. "I need to stretch my arms a bit, and this guy ought to be perfect for it." Sora meanwhile was staring right at the man, seeing something else that shocked him, before his attention was taken up by the 8 spectral arms that appeared from his back, each one a mass of dark red energy and ended with skeletal hands as red as blood. Each hand had an eye symbol on the palm with pointed fingertips and was about twice the size of a normal hand, and Sora even recognized them as the same appendages that were being disguised as telekinesis.

"Tch. Fine then, but you know what'll happen if you're late reporting in!"

"Believe me, I am painfully aware." Jagora didn't even give him a second glance, as she gathered her people and Sora stared at the figure before him.

"Hmm. This is… confusing."

"How so? That a member of a dark guild would cover their comrades?"

"Actually… I was referring to what I see now that see you." At their raised brow, Sora elaborated. "Occasionally, I seem to see the true nature of something. And looking at you… It's like seeing the night sky, but without a single star in sight… Nothing but blackness…"

Hearing his words, they actually adopted a face of shock, even the arms freezing all motion as he heard the description. After a few moments, his face became one of dark anger. "Now, you're through." The arms then curled into fists and rushed at Sora, who was quickly put on the defensive from the onslaught of attacks. All the while, the figure themselves didn't move an inch. "Who the hell are you? First you show up with nearly no warning, then you see something you shouldn't have. Now why are you here?!"

"Believe me, I don't really want to be here either!" Sora had just blocked a pair of fists with a shield while dodging the rest, noting that they were apparently stronger now that they were no longer hidden. "I was just trying to complete a side job before a festival started up when I chanced on you guys!"

"A side job?"

"I fashion crystals as well, and sell jewelry with them." A mace he formed batted another hand that tried to grab him while the shield fended off another.

The aggressor however furrowed his brow and placed a normal hand on his chin in thought. "Crystals? Jewelry? Where have I heard those recently…" After a few seconds, he looked back at Sora who was still fending off attacks and looking for a way past to attack the figure himself. "Oi, what was your name?"

"Huh? Sora of Fairy Tail!"

"Fairy Tail…" After thinking it over a bit, his eyes widened as he realized what he was trying to remember, before looking back in the direction the others had gone. "Looks like they're already gone. Maybe…" He then looked back at Sora, a grin on his face. "Looks like the chance has finally arrived!" All the arms then pulled back, and Sora watched in worry as they then turned into a pair of massive hands from the 8 as they reared back, Sora bracing himself for the attack to come.

* * *

A/N: And that concludes this chapter. This arc is honestly one I was looking forward to for quite a while as it gives me a reason to play around with another kind of magic that I had thought about around the same time I had first come up with Crystal Magic and before I got the idea to write this story. And as a bonus it gives us a look into Sora's private life and how he could handle a job on his own. I hope what I have come up with here draws you guys in and keeps you coming for more, so please let me now what you think with either Reviews or PMs. With that, I bid you all adieu. Until next time!

Happy New Years!


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